


At-Home Treatment

by Vyce



Category: Until Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Comfort Sex, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Noncon, M/M, Post-Canon, Smut, Threesome, Top!Josh, Top!Mike - Freeform, bottom!Mike, dubcon, hannah/beth are still gone, josh is alive but unstable, noncon, or i'm deleting every goddamn fic, stop whining about the tags, top!Chris
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-23
Updated: 2015-09-27
Packaged: 2018-04-23 00:34:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 21,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4856450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vyce/pseuds/Vyce
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With the weight of loneliness and last year's events drowning Josh in panic attacks and on-edge behaviour, Chris and Mike come up with ideas that might get him to finally unwind and relax.<br/></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Living wasn't something on Josh's plate anymore. Breathing, moving - sure, they existed but at what cost, when it left him emotionless and on the run from himself like a daily nightmare repeating itself in his disorted mind? This was just another year he had come up with the bright idea to bring everyone back to the lodge; it took incredible convincing, and it wouldn't have been so if it weren't for Chris persuading everyone with a sob story. A terrible way to bring the group back together; pitying the guy who, while refusing to take his medication, had psychologically attacked everyone the year prior to get back at them for pranking his late sisters and essentially sending them to their deaths. Yet to Josh, he was just relieved he wasn't alone for a little while, even if it meant dealing with the belittling gazes of sympathy--and distrust-- from everyone.  
They had planned on reuniting when it wasn't quite as cold, though the blizzards still came high up on Blackwood Mountain, effectively mocking their hopes for less layers of clothing. The eight of them sat in the main living room area of the lodge, lights of warm glows on and the fireplace lit, chattering and trying to avoid arguments this time around. It had been surprisingly calm, free from fighting and shouting, but it was almost too quiet. The girls were discussing each other's schoolwork and plans for the near-future, questioning if they could do it or not, Matt having joined in with them mid-conversation.  
Josh was sitting solemnly on one of the couches alone, holding a beer between his legs in some poor sort of subconscious parody of an erection, unmoving. His face was blank and he'd been staring at the floor over the lip of the bottle for the past half hour or so in complete silence. He didn't blame the others for not wanting to talk to him more than they had to.  
Chris, on the opposite couch with Mike, looked across the glass table to Josh, statuesque and too quiet for comfort. He mumbled to Mike he'd be on the other couch and got up to step around the table, sitting next to the brunette. Josh blinked and briefly glanced over at Chris' knee next to his before staring down at the bottle in his hands. 

"Hey, man. You're uh... awfully quiet. Somethin' on your mind?" Chris asked, looking at Josh but receiving no returned gaze. He only shrugged and took a sip of his beer, now room temperature and only half empty.  
"Josh, I haven't seen you this quiet since you embarrassed yourself that one time in ninth grade. Remember? When you were on the table, throwing condoms around at an anti-sex gatheri-"  
"I remember, okay? You said you wouldn't bring that up again."  
"I know, I was just referencing. Seriously, Josh, you pissed off all the teachers. They were gonna suspend you."  
"Stop- I have a very clear memory, 'kay? I.. I can remember things just fine."

Josh's tone was grating, and he had pulled his legs closer together to limit the physical contact between he and Chris without actually moving over. He'd done a lot of humiliating things in his early teen years and probably still did those things. He wanted to erase his memory of those events and forget they ever happened but someone always ended up bringing them back to the surface. 

"I'm not trying to upset you. You look it enough, alright. I just.. I worry. Have you been taking your meds?"  
"Why is that always the question? Huh?" Josh finally raised his head to look at the blonde for just a moment before looking away and making a stupid face to mock Chris. "Josh, did you take your meds? Josh, have you refilled your prescription? Josh, are you off the pills again? Fucking stop."

He rose from the couch, slamming the bottle on the table harder than he intended, everyone turning their heads to the noise as Josh left the room and stormed off to the kitchen, brooding in the dim room that smelled of Ashley's "suuuper super yummy" lasagna and bottles of vodka that were left open; 'quite the mix'.  
He shakingly ran a hand through his short hair and leaned against the counter, staring at the drain in the sink. He had been erratic with his medication, skipping days and then stupidly doubling the dose to make up for it. It was setting his emotions off and clouding his mind with a weird mesh of irritability and jitteriness. Small noises made him jump, tiny mistakes triggered unbelievable frustration, and accusations made him flee. His instability was dominating him and it drove him nuts.  
In the living room, Chris sighed and stood up, receiving a distrusting look from Mike, and he held his arms out and shrugged before turning and following Josh to the kitchen. 

"What's up with him?" Emily asked, almost rhetorically.  
"What isn't up with him?" Jess replied.  
"Guys-" Mike said before getting up. "Just go back to what you were doing. I'm sure he's got a reason to be upset."  
"Or he's just getting delusional again." Emily mumbled and Mike rolled his eyes with a click of his tongue as he hurried after Chris to the kitchen. 

With the small overhead light still off, Josh had turned around and had his back against the edge of the counter now, thoughts racing. A part of him wished he never told everyone to come back; all he wanted now was to be alone to wallow in his dark misery, but his wishes were not granted when he looked up to see Chris quickly coming down the dark hallway towards him. For a moment, he thought of leaving through the other kitchen door and hiding away somewhere but instead, he stayed put.  
Sighing heavily, Chris stopped at the corner of the island that was in front of Josh and stared at him, jaw clenched, blue eyes cast as shadows in the greyed out room. It took what seemed like hours for somebody to say something, but eventually Josh said something, seeing that Chris wanted to speak but clearly wasn't. 

"What, can't stay away from me for more than a minute, Chris?" 

It was a sarcastic remark, not really expectant of a response. Chris exhaled through his nose and looked down at the tile floor. 

"I know you don't like talking about it. And I wasn't trying to piss you off. Before you go off on another mocking rant, let me finish." Josh crossed his arms as he listened to his friend speak. "I don't think of you any differently because you're taking something to help yourself, Josh. I want you to be okay and I want to help you be okay but being a friend just isn't doing it. Your therapist decided you should be on something a-and I agree with her. It's helping you, it's.. bringing out the real Josh and stabilizing your mind. I know it's chaos in there and this is.. it actually works, okay, and when you get a little weird with your moods, I worry you've stopped taking them again."  
"They are not." Josh mumbled, anger rising; he could feel it in his chest and he couldn't control it.  
"What? I didn't h-"  
"Helping! They're not helping." Josh's speech was vaguely slurred and too fast, and his eyes were wide as he stared back at Chris. "They don't do anything. They make me sick. They make me hurt. They make me.. hate myself, and I can't.."

Josh couldn't finish his sentence before his breathing hitched and he looked away. Chris had dealt with this numerous times before and it always ended the same way. He would spend an hour or so trying to calm his friend down and would tell him convincingly sweet things with facts until he convinced him to start taking the pills again, and then in two weeks time, the cycle would repeat itself and Josh would have stopped taking them again.  
Chris exhaled slowly and moved closer to Josh and placed his hand on Josh's back, feeling his spine against his fingertips through Josh's shirt every time Josh leaned forwards, trying not to hyperventilate and on the verge of a panic attack.  
In the hall, Mike had heard the last remnants of Josh's yelling and slowed his pace when he was in the kitchen with the other two. He wasn't the person Josh went to with problems and he wasn't sure how to deal with any of this, so he forced his snarky comments to shut down before he said something that would earn him a punch in the face. 

"Whoa, what's going on? Josh?" Mike asked, literally unaware of what was happening at that moment.  
"Panic attack." Chris said quietly towards Mike before looking back at Josh, rubbing has back and talking gently to him. "Remember to breathe, 4-7-8, 4-7-8. Right? Breathe in for four, hold it.. good, breathe out for eight. Good, Josh. You're okay."

He slowly stepped away from Josh and beckoned Mike a few feet out of the kitchen, Josh mumbling the breathing technique numbers to himself while concentrating to calm himself down.

"He keeps having them. They used to be sort of rare but now he gets them two to three times a week, if not more." Chris said.  
"Panic attacks? Like.. he feels like he's dying or something?"  
"They're different for everybody. The worst ones are when he isn't listening to me and starts passing out from hyperventilation. I think Josh's are triggered from his terrible schedules of taking pills and not taking pills. He's supposed to be taking them for six weeks minimum but every time I check up on that after about a week and a half, I find out he's skipped doses again. He's so on edge and I don't know what to do anymore. Like, he got mad at me last Friday for taking more than two minutes to make him something to eat because he hadn't eaten all day. I mean, he was mad at me for being away from him. I want to help him, Mike, of course I do, but I'm running out of options."  
"Yeah. You're much closer to him than me but.. maybe we can, I don't know, give him some sort of altruistic at-home treatment and shit."  
"You mean like an intervention?"  
"Kind of. You said he's on edge but he invited us all back up here. I don't want a relapse of last year. I think he's lonely or something. And he needs to relax and let it go, y'know?"  
"Right. But what are we going to give Josh that is going to do that for him?"

Both of them looked back into the kitchen at Josh, who was now sitting on the floor with his legs sprawled out like a doll, still utilizing the breathing technique and not paying attention to them.

"Something good. Something that will totally override his mind. Just.. what? What does that for you, Chris?"  
"What?"  
"What calms you down? What makes you feel good about yourself and relaxed?"  
"Uh.. the obvious."  
"What, like cranking one out?" Mike chuckled, 'the obvious' always sending his mind down below.  
"Ehh.. yeah. But that's, uh, that's not a thing we're going to do. What about, like.. hypnosis? Or maybe meditation? Some people swear by it. Or..."

While Chris went on naming stereotypical relaxation techniques and ideas, Mike genuinely considered what he first said. He had no interest of particularly helping someone with the act, unless it was one of the ladies, but he questioned if they could convince Josh to do it. With how little he spoke of sexual deviancies himself, Mike assumed he never actually did anything regarding his libido, if he even had one.

"...you know how they have those, like, special song things with beats in them and they alter the chemicals in your brain or somethi-"  
"Chris." Mike cut him off. "What if we actually did that?"  
"Did what? I named, like, twenty different things."  
"Nah, nah, man, I mean the first thing you said."  
"The f-.. the first thing? Hypnotize Josh?"  
"No! Chris, what if we got Josh to go take some alone time to, you know.."  
"Are- are you serious? Are you joking with me right now? Why would I suggest that? Why would you suggest that?"  
"Oh come on, you know why. It's one of the best ways to unwind, man. Feels good, gives you a high, relieves sexual tension- and, it's good for the body."  
"Are you sure you're not the one with sexual tension?"  
"Tch, no. I have no tension, I take care of business."  
"You sure about that?" Chris raised an eyebrow, aware of the lack of contact between Mike and Jess from overhearing their conversations, with Jess always backing out of it.  
"Just.. shut up. Come on, what do you say?"  
"I don't think Josh is going to even consider something like that."  
"Why? What man doesn't want to?"  
"I don't know. The antidepressants he's on, or supposed to be on, have a negative impact on that sort of thing."  
"Oh, so he just has no sex drive."

Again, Chris clicked his tongue in annoyance at someone and walked back into the kitchen, crouching next to Josh. He was still sitting on the floor; his breathing had leveled out, but he looked like a lost puppy.

"Hey.. feel any better? Chris asked. 

Josh didn't respond right away, he only continued to stare at a particularly interesting spot on one of the tiles in front of him. He shrugged with a slight pout and mumbled, "'Guess so."  
Chris tried to balance himself on his heels while resting his right hand on Josh's slouched shoulder, lightly patting it. Josh was getting better at lowering his anxiety without the use of clonazepam, which Chris saw as progress, since Josh once admitted to finding them addictive. Chris knew he still had them and he may have still preferred to use them, but whenever Chris was around, he made sure Josh stayed away from them and used more natural approaches to calm his mind and his breathing.  
Mike had re-entered the kitchen and was standing next to the two men on the floor, pondering whether or not he just should blurt out his idea. He decided to crouch with Josh and experimentally placed a hand on Josh's leg, forcing a sympathetic smile to cross his face. Josh looked up when he felt the other hand, confused as to why the person who almost shot him last year was suddenly so willing to help.

"Hey, Josh, uh.. Chris and I came up with some ideas on how to relax you. 'Cause we know you've been tense and it must suck, right?" He looked at Chris for permission but when he gained none, he sighed and decided to just get it out.  
"Look, I don't want to know about your personal endeavours and all, but we thought about what we might do to take a load off," he chuckled again. "And, I mean, there's the typical thing. Um. Masturbating. Maybe.. that'd help? I- I don't want to be weird or anything."

Josh, now highly confused and uncomfortable, looked at Chris, who immediately looked away and dropped his hand from Josh's shoulder, stating that it was solely Mike's idea and that he had absolutely no part in it. Josh, however, decided to think about the suggestion, but quickly went red and he swallowed hard.

"I.. I- I don't know. I don't really want to. It's not something I really do."  
"You're kidding, right? You oversexualize everything."  
"Mike-" Chris snapped, hoping he would stop talking.  
"I just thought it was a natural thing for you, like it is for the rest of us. I think it'd help, I honestly do. Go, man."

Josh's mouth was agape, looking like he wanted to protest but he only frantically looked back and forth between Chris and Mike, hoping for reassurance from his friend but Chris wouldn't look at him or say anything. He felt his heart skip a beat and feared his anxiety would return and nervously fixed his clothes, showing no intention of getting up.

"..Do I have to do it for you?"

The energy shifted and suddenly felt very heavy, the kitchen achingly quiet, the silence creating its own noise and echoing in their ears. It was a rhetorical question, a joke; Mike never intended to be serious with it, he never even intended to ask that, it just spilled out. He pulled his shirt down over his denied sexual tension, a blatantly obvious erection. He swallowed, his throat having gone dry. Chris looked from Mike to Josh, nobody moving a muscle or able to speak. _'What kind of question is that? Why would he ask me that?'_  
The question repeated itself over and over again in Josh's head and he felt the heat in his cheeks getting hotter and spreading down his neck. He wasn't sure if Mike was making fun of him or genuinely asking if he wanted Mike to help him get off. Normally, he might make a silly comeback with something equally dirty but mind was still in overdrive from the panic attack and he didn't know what to think, what to say, or what to do.  
Mike thought of saying he was joking, he thought of laughing it off and covering up the awkward question with some joke and to just walk away but it wasn't so. Chris was right about the sexual tension. He'd been trying to convince Jess to do it with him for months but she always had an excuse to say no and it was weighing on Mike. He craved everything and anything and decided to keep rolling with it, his arousal controlling his mind.

"Yeah. We're doing it. Let's go."

Mike stood and grabbed Josh's arms, pulling him up off the floor and leading him towards one of the unseen staircases. He glanced briefly around the hall wall into the living room to make sure no one was watching and pulled Josh into the unlit areas of the building to the unused set of steps in the back of the lodge, dragging him upstairs to Josh's designated bedroom, Chris following behind, worried yet silenced.  
Josh had tried to look over his shoulder in question at Chris but Mike yanked on his arm, bringing his attention back to where he was walking, and when they reached Josh's room, all three inside, he quietly shut the door and turned back to Josh, chest heaving. He had a lustful look in his eyes, the air feeling electric. Josh stared at him, afraid of what was happening, frozen in place in front of his bed. The only light in the room was the faint light underneath the door from the living room light downstairs, the ceilings high enough to light the second open-concept floor as well.

"Mike, what the hell are you doing?" Chris asked, moving to stand in front of Mike and to block his view of Josh.  
"Taking care of business. Like I do."  
"Josh said he doesn't want to, let's find something that's actually useful."  
"This will be useful. We'll both help him."  
"What?"

Mike peered over Chris' shoulder at Josh, smiling and going around the blonde to get to Josh. He pushed the fellow brunette back onto the bed and kneeled next to him. He took a deep breath and calmed down enough to be a little less forceful with this.

"Okay, Josh. I realize this is probably the most fucked up thing we will ever do and it will never leave this room, got it? But you need to relax and you refuse to do it yourself and I'm tired of seeing you this way so I am going to help you."  
"..by assaulting me?"  
"No, no, no, I'm not assaulting you, I swear. Jesus. Just.. just let me help you, alright? Trust me, it'll be fine."

Josh's mind was too chaotic and disastrous to find clear thoughts and get himself to run or stand up for himself. He lied still on the bed, scared and still unsure of exactly what was going to happen. He looked for Chris again, who had been pacing and stopped next to Josh's bed, watching with a fist held over his mouth, the other on his hip.  
Josh returned his gaze to Mike's silhouetted shape when he felt hands on his thighs. They stayed there for a moment, the heat radiating off of them like a hot branding iron, before Josh felt them move up past his hip bones to his stomach. He almost laughed when he thought that Mike didn't know what he was doing, but stayed quiet, the fear returning.  
Mike took another deep breath and mentally told himself he was just helping a friend and that he wasn't gay as he moved his hands down, feeling for the button on Josh's jeans in the dark. He could just barely see, but he thought feeling might work better, if that was the point of this "treatment". It took a moment to get the button undone thanks to his hands beginning to shake, the sound of the zipper being undone seeming impossibly loud in the otherwise quiet room.

"It'll be easier if I just take them off..." Mike said quietly, deciding to remove Josh's jeans and boxers, dropping them at the foot of the bed on the floor. 

Immediately, Josh felt like screaming. It felt like he was on a dangerous roller coaster with loops and he couldn't get off of it yet. He wanted to cry and cover himself and hide for the next year in a hole alone. Josh shivered, automatically trying to cover himself by twisting his pelvis and pulling his legs together. Chris muttered "oh my god" to himself as he moved a hand up to his forehead and turned away from the two. He thought this might further screw Josh up and he was about to start a fight with Mike but he couldn't get himself to do anything.  
Mike could make out the shapes in the dark, staring down at Josh as he moved before looking up to meet his eyes, hovering his hand over Josh's pelvis.

"Okay. You ready?" he asked him, and Chris turned just enough to see them both out of the corner of his eye. Josh blinked a few times and looked away from both of them as he shyly nodded his head, trying to mentally prepare himself for what was about to ensue. No one had ever done this to him before and he'd rarely tried himself, as odd as others may find it. It made him feel weird but he thought that if he backed out now, they would make fun of him, so he closed his eyes and waited.  
Mike, still shaky, lowered his hand and took hold of Josh's dick, slowly enclosing his fingers around it. Whereas Mike was getting harder by the minute, Josh couldn't be less aroused. It was kind of amusing. Mike sighed and shook his head in the darkness as if to shake his doubtful thoughts and began to work Josh, moving his hand at a steady pace. He watched, trying to picture him doing this to himself instead, which only made his situation worse.  
As Mike gradually increased the speed of his hand, squeezing only slightly, he looked up at Josh's face. He was either feeling something or he was was faking it really well; he kept licking his lips and furrowing his brow. Mike felt him begin to harden, only to reverse seconds later. 

"Dude, what is going on with you?" Mike asked, squeezing harder.  
"I.. it's just.." Josh was trying to respond. "...Embarrassing. I don't like it."  
"Oh, come on, Josh. Relax." Mike drew out the last word, his voice lowering. "Give in to it.."

The change of tone not only ignited a small spark in Josh, but also in Chris. He slowly turned around, watching Mike's hand on Josh's cock, feeling his own arousal growing at the sight and clenched his jaw. He wanted to leave the room, to hit himself or something for feeling anything, but instead stayed where he stood, leaning against the wall. Mike's movements changed from aggressive to slower and very rhythmic and it made Chris ache with need. Still, he tried to think of other things to lessen the level of arousal that was washing over him.  
Josh opened his eyes and looked down, watching Mike's hand, looking at his face to see him smiling and biting his lip. It was fascinating and alarming at the same time, and before Josh could look away, Mike gazed back, looking at Josh like he wanted to take him then and there. For a moment, for just a moment, Josh found his sensitivity increasing and this was finally enjoyable, but he looked back down at himself, being used by another, and the same guilty thoughts of embarrassment and uncomfortable awkwardness hit him again, and he felt himself going flaccid in Mike's hand. 

"Mm, Josh, man, this isn't going to take you anywhere if you don't let it." He was doing something with his voice, intentionally making it deeper and more husky, and that alone was enough to get Josh hard again. 

"What.. what do you want me to do?" Josh asked, watching Mike once more. He briefly glanced over to Chris, an unseen smile creeping across his lips.  
"Think of something that turns you on. I mean, really turns you on. Think of that something or that someone that just.. makes you want to touch yourself, to feel good, to cum."

Josh licked his lips again at what Mike said before letting his head drop. He began to think of what had worked before, turning his head away from both Chris and Mike, a poor attempt at hiding his face. He thought of how he wanted to touch this person, move his hands down the other's chest and stomach, how he wanted to feel their hands on him, caressing. He envisioned kissing this person, having them up against the wall; but then, oh, he imagined that person dominating him and pressing into him, biting his neck and dragging their hand ever so slowly his torso, reaching into his jeans--  
Hard as a rock, the pleasure that was finally evident was beginning to make Josh squirm. He started twisting his hips, raising them in a slow sexual wave, pursing his lips and grabbing the duvet on the bed in tight fists. Mike took it as a cue to start speeding up, now that there was something there.  
Chris had looked away again, scoffing, preparing to open the door and go back downstairs and drown himself in vodka until he passed out drunk. Though as he reached the the door knob, Mike looked over his shoulder and demanded he stay in the room, saying it was Chris' idea, questioning if he really wanted to leave his friend all alone, and in agitation, Chris dropped his hand and stood still, not facing either of them for a moment before reluctantly turning back around to continue watching. Josh was writhing, and he had begun moaning. Softly, very quietly, but enough. Chris swallowed, shifting his stance in discomfort of the pressure his jeans were putting on his obvious erection.

"Yeah, that's it. Now we're talkin'. What are you thinking about, Josh? Or rather, who are you thinking about?" his voice was almost teasing. "Is it someone in this group?"

Josh, breathing quicker, shook his head and slurred "none of your business".

"Aaah, so it is." Josh didn't move, only sighed. "Is it... Jess? Is it... Sam? Ashley? Emily?"  
"Nn.. no."  
"Oh. Oh. Is it.... Chris?"

The name burned in his mind, echoing, and at the mere mention of the blonde's name, Josh whimpered and shuddered under Mike's touch. Chris stared at Josh in a mix of confusion and awe, lips pursed, unmoving. Mike looked towards him, snickering, because a lack of response almost always meant 'yes'.  
Josh opened his eyes and looked up at Chris, his face just barely visible; he looked like a puppy seeking approval. He'd never admitted to anybody what ran through his mind regarding Chris for the past few years. He wanted to say no to Mike's question, to keep hiding it, but part of him wanted to see what would happen, what Chris' expression would be. He felt his face getting hot with a blush, glad that the lights weren't on to reveal it. He hoped Chris might also be red in the face, curious, wanting, but he couldn't tell in the darkness.  
Mike twisted his hand and thumbed the head of Josh's dick as he jerked him off, earning a sudden gasp and a louder moan, Josh's legs twitching at the feeling. Mike exhaled in a moan himself, watching Josh's expressions.

"Hey, Josh. Do you want Chris to take over?"  
"What?" Chris questioned, choking on his own saliva.  
"Hm? You want Chris to do this to you? To touch you, feel you. Josh? Tell Chris, tell him how much you'd love for him to bring you the pleasure you deserve."

Josh's breathing was shallow through his opened mouth, eyes shut tightly. The way Mike spoke, the things he suggested, it was bringing Josh closer to the edge. Meanwhile, Chris was muttering 'oh my god' and 'this can't be happening' to himself as he had begun to pace again, occasionally looking at Josh, hoping he'd shake his head. 

"Joshua... you want me to get Chris to finish this? Mmm.. You want Chris to make you cum?"

The sounds escaping Josh's mouth were getting louder, more shaky, desperate. He managed to open his eyes again, though the pleasure only made him want to shut them and imagine things. He shyly nodded, afraid of the response as he looked over at Chris, clearly uncomforatble with the situation.  
Mike nodded and slowed his hand before letting go. He rose from the bed and moved over to Chris, grabbing his arm. Chris had tried pulling away, tried hitting Mike's arm to get him to let go, but on he held. 

"Come on, Chris. This is the treatment, remember? We're helping Josh to unwind. Not me, we. Wouldn't you like to know your best friend is happy because of you?"  
"N.. no. Mike. Not like this. Don't."  
"Sorry. Master's orders."  
"I-"

Chris stared at Josh, who he could see was staring back, his eyes half-lidded and probably beautifully glazed over. Mike moved his hand from Chris' arm to his hand and used his free hand to force his clenched fist open, pulling it forcefully towards Josh. Chris continued to resist; worried, unsure, panicking. He was about to jerk his hand back and bolt but Mike managed to get his hand around Josh's dick and once it was there, feeling the heat, the pulse, the dominance he held over the squirming brunette, his mind shifted like a switch and he didn't want to move his hand. Mike guided his hand, making him slowly stroke Josh's dick, then sped him up. Josh, sensitivity and mind in overdrive, bit his lip hard enough for the pain to last and moaned out, his eyes rolling back as he closed them once again. He held on tighter to the blanket, moving his legs and lifting his hips off the bed by a few centimetres, unintentionally bucking into Chris' and Mike's hands.  
Chris tried convincing himself this was just a dream and none of it was real, but the strength of his reality shattered that thought. It was all too real; the length of heat in his hand, the moaning and erratic breaths filling the room, the close proximity between the three of them. He had his chance to escape and he didn't take it. Using his other hand to nervously fix his glasses, though they hadn't needed fixing, he took deep breaths and tried to look away, blur his vision, imagine something else, but everything was betraying him and he found himself looking back at Josh, the hand around his, considering this to be one of the most awkward situations he'd ever been in but not having the heart to stop.

"Good. You stay like that. I have an idea." Mike said, his words hard to hear with the breathiness.  
"..Another idea? What?" Chris asked, heart racing again when Mike started to let go to get back off the bed again. The rhythm was so perfect and ongoing, Chris' hand kept moving, pulling the eventual orgasm out of Josh, forever shocked from this event.  
"Well, that's good treatment, but what would be even better?"

No one answered the question, Mike only gained a weird face from Josh when he opened his eyes again to see what he was doing. Mike was rubbing his hands together as if to form an evil plot, smirking in his sly plans.

"Look, you were right about the tension in me. And this situation only made it worse, you know? I think maybe we could give a little something extra to our friend here." Mike glanced down at Josh's legs, gaze traveling upwards. "Perhaps a little... well. Fucking." He raised his eyebrows.  
"N.. no. N-no, please." Josh stuttered, anxiety rising again though he was paralyzed.  
"Yes, please."

Josh began to whine at the thought of anything else being done to him, and especially when Chris' pumping drastically slowed to a near halt as he stared at Mike in a sort of horror, unable to protest for Josh. Mike was standing at the foot of the bed, seeming taller than before, watching Josh on the bed, his exposed body ready for the taking, in such a vulnerable position and state of mind.  
Unbuckling his belt with frantic desire and undoing his jeans, he lowered them only enough to reveal himself, pulling his erection out from the confines of clothing, kneeling on the bed again. He stroked himself, deliberately and fast, placing a hand on Josh's thigh, gliding it upwards and inwards, no intention of stopping for anybody now.  
He let go of himself and started pushing Josh's legs apart, bending them, forcing Chris to shift positions and move forwards, watching Mike. Josh was watching as well, his subtle sounds silenced as he questioned in his head repeatedly like a broken record if he wanted this or not. He was scared, and while he was aware of how it went down, it wasn't something he was particularly interested in taking a part in. He tried freeing his legs from Mike's grasp, muttering no's again, but his attempts failed. He watched Mike get closer, between his legs, prepping himself for what Josh only ever imagined he'd do with a girl. Josh looked at Chris, who caught his gaze and looked back, an apologetic look in his eyes and he nearly let go again.

"Chris, keep going. We wanna make this as incredible and unbelievable as possible. Hurry up." Mike ordered, taking the roll of the primary dominant figure as he lifted Josh to slide his knees just beneath him, propping him up. "I can't believe I'm doing this but fuck, I can't deal with it anymore. A man gets a little desperate sometimes..."

He spit into one of his hands and stroked himself again, the saliva beginning to drip off, which meant it was time to get to it. He adjusted Josh's position again, pointing his dick towards Josh and inching closer. 

"Pl-" Josh coughed, another panic attack threatening to seize his mind. "Please. Mike. I can't.. I.." He wasn't sure what he was trying to say, he just wanted Mike to hold on, to back off for a minute, to wait. Josh wasn't prepared, he wasn't okay, he was fucking terrified and if it weren't for the hand on his dick keeping him aroused, he might have tried throwing punches.  
"Mike. What are you doing? Wh- don't, you can't do this." Chris chimed in.  
"Listen, this is happening, alright? Good for all of us." Mike grabbed Chris' hand again to force him to move faster while simulatenously pushing himself into Josh. It was probably the wrong way to do it but he had no experience and didn't go looking up ways to screw a man in his free time; this would have to suffice. "It'll be fun, I promise."

Josh yelped, crying out at the bizarre sensation, the burn of the stretch, and he quickly threw a hand over his mouth, deciding putting up with this would be a whole lot better than the eternal embarrassment of everyone downstairs finding out and seeing this take place.  
Mike moved surprisingly slow, gentle, both hands on each of Josh's thighs, his exhales loud. It was more difficult than he'd anticipated, but it felt incredible and it flooded his mind with a powerful wanton drive of arousal and need, and he sped up, thrusting harder into Josh, more recklessly. It was rough, it was filthy, and it drove Mike crazy. It was a new experience for the trio, but perhaps most of all for Josh, being the submissive guy being penetrated by another man - his seemingly homophobic friend nonetheless. This was never supposed to happen, never dreamed of, never considered, never even on one's mind, but reality can be astounding.  
Josh's moans were loud, and his squirming on the bed under their touch was a beautiful sight, triggering more and more arousal, Mike and Chris dragging out the sounds from Josh's lips, as he'd licked them again and again, adam's apple bobbing every time he swallowed. His saliva felt sticky in his mouth and an unbearable heat was burning him from the inside out, feeling sweat begin to form across his forehead. 

"Mm.. Chris.." Josh said, his mind gone, off in some distant place thinking of seeing Chris on the ground, shirt pulled up, sweaty with a soft pink glow across his cheeks, moaning. He hadn't even realized he said his name for a moment until he realized Chris had stopped. Josh opened his eyes, moving ever so slightly from Mike's thrusts, and glanced down at Chris. He watched as Chris rubbed his eyes with his free hand, adjusting his glasses again and looking at Josh. He was glad Josh couldn't see how red his face had probably become, the heat crossing over it and down his torso as hot as Josh felt.  
Josh reached out, weak and cautious, trying to grab Chris' glasses. Chris backed away from him, worried Josh could grab his face or something. Josh made a gesture with his fingers as if he had physically grabbed the pair of glasses, gesturing his hand away to toss them. Chris took the cue and pulled his glasses off. Josh nodded, and when Chris set his glasses on the floor under the bed, Josh beckoned him to come closer. Slowly, both hands free and untouching, palms sweaty, he leaned closer to Josh's face, heart beating a million times a minute.  
When Chris' face was next to Josh's, Josh touched his face with two fingers, running them down his cheekbone to his jaw. He moved his hand to the back of Chris' neck, pulling him closer. Chris head was buzzing so loudly with questions, but he went with the flow, he let Josh pull him closer. 

"Come.. I wanna.. c'mere." Josh managed to get out.  
"What, what do you want..?" Chris whispered but he already knew the answer. 

With parted lips and quickening breaths, Josh lifted his head and pressed his lips to Chris', the chapped feeling oddly satisfying. Chris squeezed his eyes shut, a tear forming for reasons he didn't quite understand, forcing his quivering lips to kiss back. He pulled away seconds later, and sat up straight, licking his lips to taste Josh and was suddenly filled with another unwanted wave of lust. Josh was turning his head away again, but Chris moved on impulse, grabbing Josh's face with both of his hands and kissing him again, silly and sloppy, and he fucking loved it. He had to accept this.  
During the kiss, Chris set his hand on Josh's stomach, slipping his thumb under his layered shirts and pushing them up. He slid his hand beneath the shirts, feeling his abdomen rise and fall with each breath. Though again, Chris ended the kiss first and covered his mouth with the back of his hand for a moment before thinking of something, sitting up, and shifting his position. He pumped Josh quickly, squeezing and unsqueezing, hearing quiet 'fuck's and 'yes's from him, keeping him rigid and horny, receiving all this pleasure. And yet, so much more was to be had...  
'Okay. Okay, just do it Just do it a-and.. chill. Do it for Josh.' Chris told himself, exhaling in a steady and slow breath before leaning down, sliding his hand down the shaft of the the flesh in his fist, and he stuck out his tongue, looking up at Josh as he got closer. Mike, who had been keeping his eyes shut to enhance his personal pleasure, opened them the second he heard a much more dramatic, remarkably sexy groan come from Josh. He looked down to see Chris' mouth on Josh's dick, sucking the head only, making Josh shudder involuntarily. 

"Ha.. Aah, yes. Fff.. fuck. C-chriiisss." Josh moaned, arching has back off the bed, clutching at the blankets again. "O-oh.. my god."  
"Mm, Chris, I.. Ha, I think Josh is feeling better." Mike said, having been silent from enjoying this far too much, briefly forgetting this was supposed to be for Josh and not himself.

Chris only hummed in response, which raised the volumes of pleasure and thick energy in the air, leaving Josh clenching his teeth tightly, baring them, groaning in his hunger for more. Mike had taken this opportunity to slow down, to lower the chance of Josh's orgasm for just a moment, knowing it'd be stronger if they built it up this way. He moved achingly slow, in and out of the wreck on the bed, sweating. 

"'kay. Chris. Take over." Chris was about to stop sucking Josh off to answer, but Mike wouldn't let that happen just yet, answering Chris' obvious question as to what he meant this time. "Fuck Josh."

Josh giggled breathlessly at that idea, shivering and looking at Chris, waiting to see what answers his expression held. The blonde stopped sucking and replaced the sensation with a slow lick up the shaft before looking over his shoulder towards Mike. 

"Are you serious? Like.. you can't actually be seri-"  
"Chris, I'm serious as fuck right now. Get over here before I make you do it myself." Mike's tone was sharp. 

Chris tried to think about the suggestion - or rather, a demand - and risked looking at Josh again. He definitely didn't want to do that, and he wasn't going to if Josh said no. And alas, he felt a sinking feeling in his stomach while also feeling a jolt of pleasure in his groin when Josh whimpered and nodded quickly. 

"Mm.. please." Josh said quietly.  
"Nah. Tell him, Josh. Say exactly what you want him to do to you." Mike told him, beginning to pull out of Josh.  
"I want.."  
"Go ahead. Say the words. Beg."  
"Fuck me. Take me." Josh's eyes were wide, reaching his hand out to Chris but failing when Chris stood up. Josh switched to a whisper, blinking slowly as he watched Chris move to the foot of the bed, Mike stepping back out of the way for him. "Fuck.. me. Fuck me. Chris, do it. Fuck me. I want it. You - I want you."

All of Josh's confessions were overwhelming and could have very well been influenced by Mike's demands or the lust taking over his body rather than true facts, but hearing the pleas was convincing enough to do it. Chris finally unzipped his pants, sighing in relief once his dick was now out as well, throbbing painfully. The feeling of his jeans sliding against them when he was pushing them down away from his dick alone triggered a spasm. His sensitivity was far too high and he knew he'd probably be done for the second he entered Josh, but he made the decision to not let the night pass without being able to say he fucked his best friend.  
As Chris held his cock in one hand, about to follow Mike's technique with using saliva as lube, Josh raised his hand and reached out again, using his elbow on his other arm to try propping himself up. 

"W-wait." he said, sitting up, both of his layered shirts sliding back down to where they rested prior to Chris pushing them up. He stared at Chris for a moment, before chuckling and pulling Chris' hand away from himself to replace them. Josh used both hands to jerk off Chris, watching intently and unblinking, fascinated and dead set on returning at least some of this good treatment to his best friend.  
Mike had switched places with Chris and was now standing at the side of the bed, watching Josh's hands and rapidly stroking himself. After Chris started moaning with hitched breaths, Mike stepped in and pushed lightly on Josh's shoulder.

"Okay, okay, okay, okay. Good enough, man. Time for round two, am I right?" 

Josh let go of Chris and laid back down, breathing in deeply and holding his breath, waiting. When Mike sat on the bed and started working both himself and Josh in sync and Chris began to enter him, much quicker than Mike, Josh lost his breath, exhaling loudly and crying out louder than he did when Mike first started, Chris almost pulled out. 

"Josh, I'm sorry, oh man-"  
"Shut uuup.. i'sss cool, just fuck me." 

Chris nodded in response and looked down to make sure he wasn't going in at an awkward angle and hooked his hands around to the backs of Josh's knees, lifting his legs slightly and beginning to penetrate him, thrusting quickly. There was a mix of immense pain and pleasure, setting signals in Josh's brain aflame and out of control, sensations from everywhere making him writhe once again. Chris was, quite literally, fucking Josh into the mattress, causing the bed to begin shaking. It would have given away what they were doing, destroyed the point of this being on the downlow. Mike told him to not be so rough, as good as it may have felt, or they would've blown their cover.  
Doing as told, Chris forced himself to slow and be a little more gentle. He was suprised - all of them were - to find he even had it in him to fuck so well. Josh's mind kept spinning, alternating between being aware that they had to keep quiet, and not caring at all. He'd whine for Chris fuck him harder, fuck him faster, and Chris would give in every time for a few seconds before telling himself it wasn't allowed.  
Getting ever closer, the edge of the cliff of utter bliss in sight, Josh's moans were getting too loud again and he was bucking up into Mike's hand, their rhythms still in sync, until the three were in sync, Chris panting and following the intensity and speed of Mike's pumping on both of their dicks.

"J-Josh. You gonna cum soon, yeah?" Mike asked, reveling in the pleasure and asking something too obvious.  
"Yeah. Yes. Fuck." Josh replied in a slur, squeezing his eyes shut so tight he was giving himself a headache, gritting his teeth every so often, tossing his head from side to side.  
"You want us to make you cum? Mmm, yeah; you want Chris to make you cum? Joshua, tell us. Christopher. Ask him."

Chris took a moment to give in and try out dirty talk, having no idea how to do it in detail. He decided to just ask what Mike had asked, only slightly altered. He looked up at Josh, watching him move on the bed beneath him, the feeling of being inside of him completely sublime and beautiful. 

"Do you wanna cum, Josh?" he tried first. Josh nodded very quickly. "Yeah? And do you want me to make you cum? Do you want me to feed you this pleasure and pull you over the edge?" Josh was continuously nodding, and it gave Chris a dark idea, a cruel threat. 

"..Or should I stop? Hey, Josh? Should I stop right here and just.. leave you here, so lost in lust you can't even think?" 

Josh opened his eyes and lifted his head to stare down at the blonde between his legs, and shook his head so much it made his neck ache. 

"No! No, no, please, no. Please don't stop."  
"So I should keep _fucking_ you?" Chris had taken to emphasizing words. "Should I keep bringing you _closer_ and _closer_? Beg me, Josh. Beg me to fuck you."  
"Oh god. Fuck me, please, fuck me and don't stop. Don't ever.. don't ever stop. Please, Chris."

 _'Where the hell is this coming from?'_ A thought arose in the back of Chris' mind, confused as to where this type of language was coming from. It had shocked Mike, too, who had been staring at Josh with his lips parts since he started talking. It didn't matter, all that mattered was letting Josh continue to feel this way. He could tell it would end momentarily anyway.  
Chris spread Josh's legs further to get closer to him, all the way inside of him, tight as a vice and hot as flames. Mike, noticing the movements and the intention behind them, turned his attention back to Josh. While still stroking himself, he replaced his hand on Josh's dick with his mouth, sucking him as best he could, as he'd remembered certain others doing it to him. He sucked in pulses, humming and squeezing the base of Josh's dick with his hand.  
Josh's moans and whines were getting quicker and higher in pitch, body trembling beneath the both of them. He moved his hands to his hips, reaching for Mike with one hand, Chris with the other. He'd just barely been able to reach Mike, gripping the back of his head and his hair in a fist, hearing a deep groan from him and a shake as Mike came from the hair pulling, yet not ceasing to suck Josh off.  
Chris let go of Josh's legs, who had then wrapped them around Chris' waist, and rested his right hand on Josh's hand that was reaching for him. He pressed his hand into Josh's as he quickened his thrusts even further, tilting his head and listening to the sounds coming from Josh.  
Josh could feel his heart pounding in his chest as he kept holding his breath, feeling as though his body had become a furnace, the heat drowning him in an inferno. Chris breathed out in a chuckle and lowered his voice to a husky level for this finale.

"Cum for me."

Unable to hold on anymore, Josh threw his head back, raising his hips off the bed, legs shaking, holding onto Mike's hair and his own hip tighter as he moaned out incredibly loudly, his attempts to shut himself up failing. The pleasure washed over him in enormous waves, dragging him under into the depths of it all; sending him over that cliff. Josh came powerfully into Mike's mouth, the impact making him choke, involuntarily swallowing and he pulled away cursing, cum dripping from his mouth before he could spit or swallow the rest.  
And in a final rush, Chris released into Josh, trying to supress his moans, though nothing could beat Josh's sounds. The bliss was heaven, and Chris hoped it somehow connected between all three of them for a perfect trinity of ecstasy. He stayed still for a moment, eyes closed and completely calm.  
In the afterglow, Mike had rubbed the back of his hand across his mouth to remove the remainder of tonight's evidence from himself and tucked himself back into his Jeans. He rose from the bed in a sort of shock, looking at Josh, his chest rising and falling, slowing down to a steadying heart beat. He adjusted his own clothes before reaching down to gently place a hand on Josh's shoulder. 

"Hey, man, you seein' colours behind your eyelids?" he asked quietly. Josh nodded so gently, almost not at all, mouth agape as he lied still.  
"That's how you know it was a good fuck." Mike chuckled softly and turned away from Josh, heading for the door, muttering 'hope we helped you out' to Josh. 

As Mike was reaching for the doorknob, he glanced over to Chris, who had finally pulled out and was cleaning himself and Josh up from the sticky mess. Mike shook his head in humourous disbelief, a smile crossing his lips as he opened the door, feeling awkward now that his lust had gone away and his sexual tension had been fulfilled. 

"I'll, uh.. see you downstairs? Or see you tomorrow, I guess. Whatever." Mike said, and waited for a response before leaving.  
"Yeah." Chris replied, no other words really necessary as he nodded once at Mike, watching him leave the room. 

Chris zipped his jeans back up and picked up Josh's clothes from the floor, deciding it was only right to reclothe his friend. He managed to get Josh's boxers and jeans back on, briefly zoning out to question if what happened was real. Chris stepped around the bed to the side, watching Josh for a moment. He looked peaceful finally, happy and at rest. 

"Josh?" Chris whispered, and when Josh didn't respond, Chris assumed he had already fallen asleep. 

Stepping back to check down the hall to make sure Mike was gone, the soft light from the main light out in the living room filtering in again, he sighed and reached under the bed for his glasses. Setting them back on his face, he stepped up to Josh, asleep in dreamland, and he smiled softly. This wasn't what he had in mind at all for getting Josh to relax and find a happy place, but he guessed it was probably a lot more effective than his stupid suggestions from earlier.  
Chris moved Josh just enough to pull some of the blankets down, and draped them across the brunette. He gently caressed Josh's cheek with the back of his hand, paying attention to the feeling in case he never felt it again, before leaning down and kissing his forehead. He saw Josh's lips curl into a smile in his slumber as he backed up and turned towards the door. As he reached the threshold, he looked over his shoulder at the sleeping prince on the bed. The extreme, new-record awkwardness that he had been involved in tonight with Josh and Mike was real, and it was bound to bring about strange behaviour and a lack of conversation for awhile, but that was something he could deal with in the morning. For now, it was simply time to let Josh rest.  
Chris grabbed the doorknob and began closing the door, leaving it open half a foot. He chuckled to himself before fixing a straight face.

"Don't tell anyone, but.. I love you, you ass."

Chris walked down the hallway, thinking of showering before going back downstairs, or perhaps just taking off to bed. In the quiet dimly lit room where the thick energy had flown out and cleared with a gentle one, Josh grinned. 

"I love you too. Bitch."


	2. Childrens' Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of last night's events in Josh's room leave an awkward tension in the air, but upon the realization of what was behind Michael's intentions, Josh and Chris team up against him in a prank of humiliation.
> 
> (Sorry, super slow build for something small. This chapter feels mega OOC..)

The night was drawing the curtain closed, bright moon enlightening the dark skies ahead. Sitting inside, despite how comfortably warm it may have been, had proven to be nothing but an obnoxious expectancy for some. Out on the front porch, gazing out into the woods, snow in sheets across the ground, Sam and Jess stood together, huddled in coats and an extra layer of clothes underneath. Sam had made the decision that hot chocolate, steaming in the icy air, was plenty better than a cold, bitter bottle of beer. She was never one for getting totally drunk, even if it was promised with good friends. 

Jess, on the other hand, had a thing for spiked drinks, feeble as she was. She'd taken to a hot cup of apple cider, 'heated up apple juice in a big-girl glass', she called it. She spiked it with three shots of vodka, claiming with strong intent that she was not a lightweight, though everyone could see past the lie.

Sam held her mug closer to her face, the heat radiating off of it to warm her chilled red nose. She sniffled with no reason behind it other than to break the silence, turning to Jess, who had been leaning against the opposite post at the top of the steps, staring intently into her glass while sipping at the cider.

"So how's the night for you?" Sam asked, a gentle smile on her face.  
"It would be better if this stuff kicked in more. It gets boring in there. I don't want to talk about work and goals, I want to talk about fun stuff." Jess replied, sneering before taking another sip.  
"Yeah, I can agree with that; except my idea of fun is probably different than yours."

Sam moved her cup in a circle, so as to swirl its contents, deciding she should actually drink some before it went cold.

"So what do you think they're doing up there?" Jess asked, keeping her gaze fixed on her drink.  
"What, the guys? Did they go upstairs?"  
"You didn't hear them?" Jess replied, a mocking grin in place as she looked over to Sam, who responded with a look of confusion. "Come on, they were making enough noise. I just don't want to picture what they did."  
"Jess, I don't quite get what you mean."  
"Because you were so zoned out?"

Jessica's voice was sharp in tone, making a fool out of Sam without needing to directly pinpoint any embarrassing factors. Sam was always zoning out whenever she ended up with a hot chocolate. Jess chuckled to herself, looking back out towards the woods before the lodge.

"I knew they were up there because I saw a shadow in the second floor hallway. And, the obvious, because they were making so much fucking noise. Somebody was really loud. I don't know what they were doing, but I hope it was nothing to be concerned over, if.. you know what I mean."

Sam frowned, unsure of what exactly Jess was talking about. It was true, she had zoned out in the living room after she made herself a hot drink, and hadn't tuned in to any sort of noise or conversation. She sighed and shifted her stance, balancing more on the opposite leg. It was one embarrassment to ask what the person said more than three times because you still didn't hear what they said after repeating it so many times; it was another to not understand what somebody is telling you, even when they put it in such fine detail, a child could clue in. There was something about the classic childhood memory of hot chocolate during the Winter that always made Sam zone out with nostalgia. She decided to pretend she got what Jess meant, and kept quiet.

Upstairs, a strange buzzing in his head, like a vice of energy swirling around in his brain, Mike rubbed at his eyes as he walked down the hallway, stumbling every few feet. He questioned if what he had just done was real or if he was delusional, heading back downstairs through the staircase behind the kitchen. He shook his head in disturbance, mind spinning. Whatever happened, he wanted to forget about it for now. 

Stepping into the kitchen, Mike reached for a bottle of vodka, still unopened, and drank straight from the bottle. He didn't want to get drunk, he just wanted something to help him relax and put him to sleep. He'd rather drown in alcohol to get the job done than to choke on pills. Sleep meds were a sort of discomfort when it came to how Mike chose to do things. He refused them, and when he thought about it, refusing medication in front of Josh probably wasn't a good influence.

Wincing at the burn in his throat from the alcohol, Mike set the bottle back down and walked out to the living room, everyone seeming tired and in total comfort, sitting close to one another in quiet conversation. He looked for Jess, but Emily sat in her place, and oddly enough, he wasn't in the mood to talk to Emily about anything.

"Well, long time, no see. Where on earth did you go?" Emily said, seeing him out of the corner of her eye when he walked in. Mike wanted to roll his eyes, the conversation now inevitable.  
"Uh, I was just upstairs, you know.. checkin' out some stuff."  
"Right. I thought you were just going to check on Josh?"  
"Ah, we did. We did check on Josh. He's doing much better." Mike forced a smile, chuckling nervously. "Yeah! He's decided to turn in early, so.. I came back down.

Feeling Emily's silent suspicion attacking him like daggers, he scratched the back of his head and cleared his throat, avoiding eye contact.

"Um. Where's Jess? And Sam?"  
"Outside."  
"Outsi- at this time? What time is it, anyway? It's freezing out, isn't it?"  
"It's past midnight. And I don't know, go see for yourself, Mike. They're on the porch."

The lack of smiles and a single raised eyebrow made it very clear that Emily didn't trust what Mike was saying, or how he was behaving. He knew it wasn't normal for him, but he was never any good at hiding things. 

Not bothering to slip on boots or a coat, Mike went out the front door, greeted by two blondes looking over theirs shoulders towards him. Each of them smiled, Jess stepping up to him to hook an arm around his.

"Hey handsome, what were you doing up there?"  
"Up.. where?"  
"Don't play dumb, Michael, we know you took off upstairs, and you guys were really loud with whatever you were doing. I gotta tell ya, I started to worry. Choose a soundproof room next time."  
"What? What did you hear?" Mike felt his face fill with pallor, though thanks to the dark grey-blue hue cast on his face in the Wintery darkness, it wasn't visible.  
"I don't know, but I heard it. At least you're back now, right?"  
"Yeah. Of course." 

Mike smiled, wrapping an arm around Jessica's waist and leaning closer to her, kissing her softly. As she giggled and looked away once the kiss was broken, Mike swallowed, pursing his lips. He remembered he never exactly cleaned himself up after the acts that took place in Josh's room. _'So they were real?'_ He licked his lips, still tasting _him_ , hoping that Jess didn't. As the thought became clear as to what he'd done to Jess over this stupid plot to 'help Josh', he felt sick, wishing again and again it could be reversed.

He watched the both of them as they stared mindlessly into the wilderness, sipping at their beverages in the cold night air. Crossing his arms tightly over his chest and bouncing from foot to foot, getting colder every second, Mike stared at the wooden floor of the porch, thinking of what he'd done, thinking he might lose some friends if they ever found out, and knowing for certain the next morning would be incredibly awkward to deal with. 

"So where's Josh?" Sam asked, turning around to face the taller individual. Her smile never seemed to fade.  
"He's sleeping," Mike had said a little too quickly. "I mean, he should be. He said he was going to bed."  
"What? Why? What did you do to him?"

The question felt like a gong being struck in his head, his ears ringing. What he did to Josh, no one needed to know about. He wasn't going to explain anything to anyone, the event already leaving a scar in his mind, half regretful and half satisfied.

"Nothing. He was just tired. It's okay, Sam, he's fine; trust me."  
"He better be, or I'm coming after your ass."  
"Why did he leave in the first place?" Jess chimed in, referring to the slam of the bottle on the living room table before Josh left the room after yelling at Chris.  
"Oh- Chris said it was a panic attack. Something about worrying about him not taking his medicine." Mike responded. It wasn't a lie; he answered with honesty about exactly what Jess was asking.  
"Josh isn't taking them again?" Sam's smile finally fell away, standing up straight. Chris had told her about how often Josh stopped taking what he was prescribed, but she didn't know about this time.  
"Yeah, I mean, I'm sure he'll start again now that Chris talked to him about it, so.. no worries, right? Anyway, I'm gonna go back in. It's freezing out here."

Mike turned to go back inside the lodge, twisting the doorknob and opening the door quickly, one foot on the threshold before he was stopped, frozen in place. 

"Then what did you do? If Chris is the one who talked to Josh and helped him, what were you doing with them?"

Mind drawing blanks at what to lie about this time, questions raced, and he wondered if he should tell them he helped too, or if he should pretend he didn't hear the question and not answer. The latter would have been absolutely ridiculous to try, considering the silence; it would have been impossible not to hear Sam's question unless you were deaf.  
Refusing to let either of them see his face through another false statement, Mike lowered his head, continuing to step inside. Whatever he said now, it would surely stick in their minds and he'd be bombarded with questions when they saw him again. 

"I felt bad about last year and I just wanted to see if I could help, too. No harm in that, right? Just helping a friend."

Mike shut the door and shook out his hands, assuming doing so would somehow shake the cold from his body. He held his breath and didn't bother glancing towards the others before heading back towards the steps he came down, returning to the second floor. His room was three doors away from Josh's, and even through several walls, he worried the close proximity would somehow force the strange energy to return and rebuild. 

He noticed Josh's door was now mostly shut, and Mike guessed Chris had left and gone off to his room or something. He was sure they all felt awkard at this point, wishing it never happened, wishing they could wipe their minds clean with bleach. He finally exhaled and stepped into his room, quietly shutting the door and sitting on the edge of his bed. Part of him wanted to stay awake, because he knew that once he fell asleep, the morning would come too soon and it would be time to discuss what happened.  
Too tired and at guilt, the other half of him decided there was no real good point in forcing himself to stay up, and Mike changed out of his clothes and crawled into bed, the warmth a little too reminiscent. _'Oh well...'_

\---

_'..Are you ready?'_  
'Please don't-'  
'Come here, I want to..'  
'Don't stop!' 

 

Mouth dry, gasping for air, Josh's eyes shot open, the blur in his vision fading quickly. He stared at the wall, still coming out of his dream. It took a moment to realize it was a memory of the previous night. He blinked and looked down at himself, seeing he was fully clothed before sitting up. He ran his fingers through his air slowly, knowing it was probably a mess. He groaned softly to himself before rolling his shoulders back in an attempt to crack his back, getting up from his bed. 

After leaving the blankets down, no desire to tidy the room or make his bed, Josh looked for his phone, wondering what time it was. He wasn't where he usually put it, on the dresser next to the door. He checked on the nightstand, in his mess of blankets, in his pocket, on the floor; it wasn't in the room. Sighing deeply, Josh turned back to his dresser and pulled out a different outfit from the top drawer. He could have gone downstairs in what he was wearing, but that might spark some questions.

Once dressed, Josh left his room and sluggishly moved down the hall. He couldn't explain it with any particular word, but it felt weird to walk. He never expected the idea of screwing someone so hard they couldn't walk to be a legitimate thing. It was a ball of confusion in his mind.

Down at the island in the kitchen, Josh found Ashley eating cereal alone, resting her head on her hand. She forced a smile when Josh walked in, quickly glancing back down to her bowl, poking at the cereal with her spoon before having another spoonful. 

"Mornin'.." Josh said, voice gravelly, opening the fridge to grab the pitcher of milk. He turned on the coffee maker, changing the coffee filter and pouring in a few spoonfuls of fresh coffee grounds.  
"Good morning. You went to bed early last night?" Ashley responded.  
"Ha, yeah. I guess I was just a little too tired. Sorry."  
"Don't apologize to me, I have no problem with it. I know Sam was worried, though."  
"Sam?"  
"Yeah, she talked to Mike about whatever happened to you and he just took off. She said he was acting strange, and apparently you had an attack or something?"  
"Panic attack, yeah. Um.. they helped me through it. We hung out for a bit. Guy stuff."

Josh smiled crookedly, back against the counter in the same place he stood the night prior. When Ashley only chortled without looking up, Josh pursed his lips together, turning back around to the coffee maker. He took a cup from the cupboard and put in a single teaspoon of sugar, figuring a stronger coffee would wake him up better and clear his head over a sweet coffee, like Chris preferred. When the light came on, Josh set his cup beneath the drip spout of the coffee maker, staring at it, waiting. 

He watched the steaming liquid fill his mug, incredibly slowly. The silence in the room was uncomfortable, especially because it was Ashley in there with him. Josh was well aware about her unending crush on the blonde. Josh smiled to himself when he remembered asking Chris about sex with her last year at the lodge, realizing it probably never happened and that Chris instead took Josh to 'the bone zone' last night. If Ashley found out, she'd probably kill them both, only to wallow in misery for the next year or so.

"So when did you guys go to bed? Any fun pranks I should know about?" Josh asked, pouring milk into his cup and sipping at the bitter liquid. He couldn't say he actually liked coffee, it was just something he insisted on drinking, a sort of classic morning aesthetic.  
"Well you guys were all first to go. Mike only came down for a few minutes, and Chris never came back at all. Emily went shortly after, and I fell asleep on the couch. I slept there all night, so.. I don't know when the others went to bed. It was definitely after one, though."  
"Ash," Josh clicked his tongue. "You gotta sleep in your bed, we made them extra comfortable for a reason."  
"Not my fault I fell asleep down here," she finally smiled again, genuinely.  
"Don't drink so much, then."  
"Joshua! I did not drink last night."  
"I'm pretty sure everybody did. It's cool. Did you sleep alright?"  
"Yeah, you should've seen Jess... I slept fine. Neck's a little cramped but I'm good."  
"What, did you guys get her wasted?"  
"She did it to herself. That girl is the queen of spiked drinks. I'm surprised she didn't pass out before me, she had enough vodka."  
"Sweet."

Navigating through the hallways towards the open parts of the lodge, Chris looked out the windows as he entered the grand living room. The faint blue glow of the morning washed over the entirety of the room, and it was peacefully quiet. He saw a blanket on one of the couches and wondered which one of them passed out drunk there. 

Upon walking past the table littered with beer bottles and a tipped over empty bottle of vodka, Chris spotted a familiar phone on the couch he and Josh were on last night. He picked up the cellphone encased with an acrylic skull and pushed the home button, the date and time lighting up on the screen. It was barely nine in the morning, the eleventh of November.

Chris carried the phone towards the kitchen, hoping he was the only one awake so he could be alone to think. When he reached the hall that lead to the left doorway, he heard talking and stopped in his tracks, listening.

"You did not pull that off well, Josh."  
"What do you mean? I pull off every prank with the utmost care and certainty that it will be flawless."  
"You left the biggest giveaway ever out in the open, you screwed up your own plan."  
"Hey, that was on purpose."  
"Really? Because I remember you at a loss for words when we asked you about it."

Josh laughed, crossing one ankle over the other as he leaned sideways against the island where Ashley sat, his cup of coffee mostly gone.  
Chris stared off into space, cursing for his luck being terrible that morning. Leave it to the controllers of his fate to have those two awake first. He thought of turning back and waiting in his room until the others woke up, but his growling stomach forced him to keep going. 

He walked into the kitchen, clearing his throat with his head down, remembering all the times he did that in school hallways in hopes he would somehow appear invisible to avoid being talked to. He noticed Ashley's bowl and himself a bowl of cereal. He never skipped coffee in the morning and though he didn't want to get close to Josh again just yet, he had no choice. He reached over to the coffee maker instead of stepping behind Josh to get to it, restarting it. The cup he had the morning prior was still on the counter, and so he took it to fill it with three teaspoons of sugar, placing the cup in the holder of the coffee maker, taking a few steps away to be in front of the fridge, as far from them both without leaving the kitchen. 

The conversation had gone quiet, as had the giggles. Josh kept looking at Chris, hoping he would say something first, but his body language proclaimed he had no intention of doing so. Thank god for Ashley's desire to talk to him as often as possible.

"Good morning, Chris," she said, leaning over the island countertop to see him better.

Lost in thought, Chris hadn't paid attention to the greeting at first, moving his spoon in reptitive circles in his bowl. 

"Chris!" Ashley called out again.  
"Huh?" Chris looked up at her, locking eyes briefly with Josh.  
"I said good morning."  
"Oh. Right. Good morning."  
"Brain fuzzy this morning?" She smiled, eyes gleaming as she tucked her hair behind her ear.  
"Yeah. Very. So, um.. who passed out on the couch?"  
"That was me." Ashley raised a hand.  
"You slept on the couch?"  
"I fell asleep there. It's not a big deal, it was fine. The Washingtons have very comfortable furniture."

Ashley noticed Josh's stares directed at Chris, and how Chris was avoiding them. They were always looking at each other, which said the situation was odd and something must have happened. _'Maybe Josh did something stupid? Maybe he didn't listen. Maybe he made fun of Chris.'_

"Well, uh," Ashley stood from her stool, stepping around the island and in between the both of them to set her bowl down in the sink. "I'm gonna go clean up the mess those guys left in the living room."

 _'Shit. Please, please, please. Please don't go, you're my saviour here.'_ Chris thought, heart racing when she walked out of the room and went down the short hallway, back to the living room. When she was gone, Chris stared back down at his bowl, the cereal starting to go soggy. Josh had been watching him poke at it since he first poured it.

"Are you gonna eat that?" Josh asked, resting on his elbow against the counter.  
"What?" Chris finally looked at him.  
"Your cereal, man. You've been playing with it this whole time."  
"I haven't been playing with it. I just.."  
"Poking at cereal and moving your spoon around without eating it is, in my books, playing with it."

Chris clenched his jaw, feeling his stomach grumble again, finally taking the first spoonful. As he ate, a part of him wanted to carry out a full conversation with Josh, like they always did, but he felt blanketed in the awkward atmosphere, understanding the idiom of 'cat got your tongue?' entirely in this moment. He knew Josh would say something else, though. He always did. Josh had mastered everything odd, including silent treatments and uncomfortable situations.

"You sleep okay?" the brunette[1] asked a moment later.  
"For what little sleep I got, yeah, it was.. it was fine. What about you?"  
"Probably the best sleep I've had in a long time." Josh smiled, but the only thing Chris returned was widened eyes and a quick glance away. 

Josh drank the rest of his coffee, moving to place it in the sink, and handing Chris' cup to him. Chris blinked, a brief thought demanding he stop giving his friend a silence he didn't deserve, and took the cup from Josh, making sure to look him in the eyes. He gave a half smile to him, sipping the coffee before putting it down on the counter and working on finishing his softened cereal. When he was nearly finished, he remembered the phone in his pocket, and handed it to Josh.

"Chris, I won't go into detail or make it any more awkward, but I just want to say thanks." Josh said, keeping his gaze fixed on his friend when he received his missing phone, smiling softly. "Weirdest way to do it, I'll admit, but if it weren't for you and.. Mike.. I probably never would have gotten to sleep. Or out of that panic attack. Or calm right now. Also I heard you."  
"..Heard what?"  
"What you said, when you were leaving the room."  
"Christ, Josh, I thought you were asleep..."  
"I don't fall asleep that fast. Not even with the goodies you gave me."

Josh laughed, finding the situation humorous now, though Chris was the one to feel embarrassed now.

"Seriously. It was.. nothing."  
"Don't hurt my feelings, Christopher."

Josh stepped back, away from the blonde, considering dropping the conversation for now and finding something else to do. He thought of going outside for fresh air, cold as it was, promising himself to stay close to the lodge. He knew the wendigos usually stayed away during the day, and staying cooped up inside was a total bummer. They weren't up here again to do nothing.

"But just so you know," Josh said, eyes cast down to the floor. "I responded to you."

Josh turned and left the kitchen, off to find something suitable to wear outside for a walk, leaving Chris with more questions alone in the empty room. _'He responded? What did he say?? Shit, why did I even say anything? Was he awake when I kissed his forehead? That jerk.'_ Josh was gone before Chris could ask. Wherever he was going, Chris would be without answers until he got back.

\---

"Snowball fight!" 

In the late afternoon hours, everyone had followed through with the idea of some outdoor time, skies white as the snow as ground. Jess was the biggest snow fanatic, filled with joy when Winter came around each year. It meant building snowforts, failed igloos, and starting grand snowball massacres with good friends.  
When no one was looking, Jess had gathered snow into a snowball, declaring a war and threw it at the closest person, hitting Emily in the back. It wasn't so much of a random throw, seeing as they were still rival enemies because of their relationships with Mike.

Emily yelled and spun around, glowering at the cheeky grin on Jess' face. She crafted a snowball and threw it back at her, hitting her chest. The others grew giddy, joining in and making snowballs as fast as their hands would allow, hoarding them at their feet. Matt threw one playfully at Emily, then to the farthest away from himself. His aim was off and the snowball flew past Sam's face. He earned himself an expression of surprise and a drawn out 'whoa'. Sam's retaliated by picking up one of the snowballs at her feet and throwing it with fake intent to kill towards Matt's face, knocking him backwards from the impact, laughing with a face full of snow.

They carried on like this, snowballs flying from every angle, some soldiers fallen, some still standing. Ashley and Sam had teamed up against all the boys, hiding behind the metal cabinet at the side of the lodge beneath a window. Mike had taken the most hits, and he realized everyone was now targetting him. Standing in the middle of the group proved to be a terrible idea. He was hit in the back, the leg, the shoulder, and the face, laughter seeming to echo off the trees from all directions as the attack proceeded. 

Eventually Mike gave up, laughing so hard he couldn't speak, falling to the ground. Josh was first to approach him, the others following. He held a snowball in his hand, throwing it up in the air every few seconds in a threatening gesture. He stood over Mike, staring at him with a smirk on his face. The others watched and started rooting for Josh to hit him in the face.  
Josh collapsed to his knees over Mike, straddling him, seeing his expression change to one of uncertainty. Josh grinned and mumbled only loud enough for Mike to hear.

"Thanks for last night, bro," he said before slamming the snowball into his face, smearing it across his eyes, his cheeks, his mouth. The others cheered in unison, crowding around the two in a lopsided circle. Josh stayed on top of Mike too long for comfort, the look in Mike's eyes when he wiped the snow from his face was a mix of last night's lust and concern. Josh could feel him harden beneath himself, Mike turning his head away. Josh intentionally grinded into him as he was getting up.

Off to the side, Chris had noticed the deliberate movements and looks exchanged between them and, like the night before, had questioned taking off to be alone someplace away from them both. Josh was embarrassed and holding back, but now he seemed high up on a pedestal of confidence. It was confusing, but Chris wasn't entirely surprised by it. 

"You got owned, babe," Jess said, stooping over the man on the ground. He looked up her smiling face, taking her hand when she reached out to help him up. Mike laughed it off, standing close to her, continuing to brush away the snow from his clothes and his hair. 

Josh smiled to himself, chuckling, turning on his heel and slowly heading back to the front porch to go back inside. It was a subtle hint to be followed, but Mike refused to fulfill his wishes. Not now. Chris, however, still wanted answers as to what Josh had apparently responded with last night when Chris haphazardly confessed his love. He followed Josh into the house, hoping the others would follow, too. It was a strangely abrupt ending to the game, however. 

Back inside the warmth of the lodge, they found solace together once again in the living room, though it had been cleared of alcohol this time. Josh claimed the middle couch this time, sitting in the centre cross-legged, waiting. He checked his phone, the time nearing five in the evening, sky darkening with the early departed sun. It would be time to eat soon, if Josh could convince himself to do so. 

Josh looked up when the others entered the house, deliberately making eye contact with Mike and Chris, concentrating on sending signals and telepathic messages to get them to sit on either side, but it was only Chris who sat beside Josh. 

"You think Mike's pissed about last night?" Josh asked, ignoring Chris' discomfort over it.  
"I have no idea, Josh."  
"I mean, he's avoiding me. He's obviously avoiding me. That was his fuckin' plan, though."  
"Well, he is the homophobe of the group."  
"Nah, I think he's closeted."  
"Seriously?" Chris looked at Josh, a deadpan expression on his face. "You think Mike's in the closet."  
"It's possible."  
"Or, he was so sexually wound up, it didn't matter who he got it on with."  
"..Gee, Chris, way to make your friend feel better."

Josh was about to stand but Chris grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back down, Josh losing his balance and using Chris' knee as assistance to keep from falling on him. 

"I'm sorry. I keep thinking about it and it.. it was weird for me."  
"Weird for you? Try being the one getting impaled."  
"Do you have to put it that way?"  
"Well, I don't know, man. With the way you were doing things..."  
"Jesus Christ, Josh."  
"Dude, it happened; don't dwell on it like it's some bad memory. You're the one who said you loved me."  
"Shut up."  
"Oh, I love you, bro! You're everything to me, bro! Bro, you're the whole world to me!" Josh mocked Chris, laughing.  
"Dude. Enough."

Chris hit Josh in the chest with the back of his hand, furrowing his brow in frustration. He was glad they were talking normally again and sitting together, but he didn't expect it all to blow over that fast. It was a new experience for all of them, and it was their first time together, even if it was some attempt to relieve sexual tension or a mistake that a strange relaxation technique for Josh had turned to. It was only ever meant to be Josh helping himself, or one person helping him with just a hand, but it had become so much more. Chris wished, in some part of him that was still in denial, that he would have walked out of the room. 

The visual memory left an imprint on his brain, an etch-a-sketch of all he had done to Josh. He kept hearing the sounds Josh made, and sitting next to the laughing brunette was making it more awkward than it needed to be. Chris, who had been sitting with his feet on the floor, pulled his legs up to be in the same cross-legged position as Josh, hoping the overexposure of himself and hands in his lap would effectively hide his boner.

"I have an idea."  
"Great."  
"No, I'm serious. You know how Mike's always, like.. making dumb comments about gay men?"  
"I guess so?"  
"And how he's _'so uncomfortable_ ' about it that he stays away from them? Do you think he's doing that to us?"  
"I'm not gay, Josh."  
"Relax, I never said you were."  
"You implied it."  
"Why is it such a big deal? You a homophobe, too, man? Not cool."  
"Well, are you gay?"  
"Me? No. Um. I don't know, actually.. So what if I am."  
"Doesn't make a difference to me. I'm not a homophobe, but I'm not gay."  
"Bicurious." Josh mumbled. "Anyway, the idea. Let's tackle Mike."  
"Excuse me?" Chris asked a bit too loudly.

Josh nodded enthusiastically with an open-mouthed smile on his face. He'd thought of it when he was sitting on Mike in the snow. He'd even started thinking of possible scenarios where it could take place. The easiest was the idea of using the stereotypical suddenly dragging into a room that was scene so often in movies and tv shows. 

Chris, still staring at Josh in a sort of horror, was about to him again when Josh wouldn't answer his question. He was watching the others, focusing on Mike and how he kept pulling Jess closer to him, as if to satiate his insecurities by getting as close as possible to a woman. Josh thought he might try convincing Jess to have sex with him again tonight, and he knew this plan had to go down before he tried that, assuming he hadn't already. 

"It will happen upstairs. Or maybe downstairs. Downstairs? No, upstairs is good." Josh spoke again, answering his own questions  
"You want to attack Mike?"  
"Tackle, not attack. Taaackle. No 'A' in the beginning."  
"Funny." Chris was so unamused with Josh, anybody in the room could have been able to tell just by seeing his face. Josh giggled.  
"We hide out in a room, right? Leave the door open. Maybe we leave a lamp on, nothing too bright. Maybe make some sort of noise to lure him to the door."  
"How are you going to get him upstairs in the first place? It doesn't look like he's leaving her side any time soon."  
"We. Maybe we suggest a game. Shit, board games are downstairs, though. What about hide and seek?"  
"You want us all to play hide and seek. Because we're children."  
"Who ever said it was only for kids? Where's your appreciation of fun?"  
"If you can convince all of them to play hide and seek, I won't call it a kid's game ever again."

As they had done since they were kids, Josh held up his index and middle fingers, locked together. It was a sort of imitation of pinky swears.

"Promise it, bro."  
"Fine, I promise. You're ridiculous sometimes." Chris hooked his fingers around Josh's in a pact of truth.  
"But you love me."  
"Joshua, don't start."  
"You said it, not me."  
"..Are you sure about that? You know, you never told me what you responded with to what I said last night."  
"Didn't I? I thought I did. I called you a bitch."  
"What??" Chris scoffed, rising from the couch, briefly tuning in to all the conversations from the others before walking away. Josh laughed and hurriedly followed after him, grabbing his shoulder.  
"Chris, don't go. I'm kidding. I mean, I did sort of call you a bitch. But.."

Chris stopped walking and turned to face Josh, the other not bothering to back up. They were close enough for secrets, close enough for dancing, close enough for something other than friends. He looked at Josh, the light shining in his green eyes just right, his half-opened mouth curled into a smile - a feeling overcame Chris that made him want to kiss Josh more than anything. He almost went for it until he felt he was being watched, and realized it wouldn't be a good decision with all the others around, especially Ashley. And to speak of the devil, she was the one watching them. Her lack of response in conversation to Sam had the blonde following her gaze to see the two best friends standing hardly more than half a foot apart. She didn't know what to feel or think about the situation but she guessed it was more of a jealousy for Ashley, who had failed to hide her admiration towards Chris for the past four years. 

Josh had noticed Chris looking at his lips and wanted him to go for it, like he did last night, but when he didn't, Josh felt his heart palpitate in disappointment. He licked his lips before attempting to speak.

"I said 'I love you', too. Okay?"

When Josh backed up and rubbed his nose, Chris continued to look at Ashley, zoning out. He blinked when he regained awareness and looked towards where Josh was, but he had walked away. Chris looked around for him, seeing he had gone back towards the others.

"Alright, who wants pizza?" Josh asked excitedly, rubbing his hands together. Everyone responded with some sort of approval, putting the attention on Josh.  
"Unfortunately, it's frozen shit. Not like we can get helicopter delivery up here, right? Still down for it?"  
"Pizza is pizza, man," Matt said, the others cheering in agreement.  
"Hell yeah, it is. After that, what do guys say we have some good ol' childhood fun and play hide and seek?"

The group laughed, but there were also shrugs and smiles, and it was a unanimous decision. Josh looked over his shoulder at Chris in an 'I told you so' fashion, grinning. He hurried off to the kitchen, Sam following him to help, beckoning Chris to join her. With Josh's stupid idea pitch, and his confession, he was back to not wanting to be near him just yet, but he followed anyway.  
In the kitchen, Josh was pulling boxed pizza out of the freezer, tearing the cardboard open. Sam patted his back as she walked past him to turn the stove on. 

"400, right?" she asked. Josh checked the back of the box and nodded.  
"You got it. I wish we had a pizza oven. Like, one of those fancy ones they use in delivery places and Italian restaurants?"  
"Oh yeah, that'd be pretty sweet," Sam replied, smiling at Josh before opening the drawer beneath the stove to pull out two pizza pans. "Is two enough?"  
"If you guys don't hog it all, and eat like civilized people, it'll be fine. Besides, the third pizza's nasty."  
"What is it?"  
"Hawaiian."

Chris stood in the doorway, reminiscent of this morning and the visit here last night. It could be adopted as the decisions room or the private room, since they kept having private conversations and ideas here.  
Two were all that was needed for making frozen pizza at home, Chris thought, not understanding the point of Sam calling him in, until she gave her typical speech starter, the drawn out 'sooo'.

"Sooo. You guys party it up or something last night?"  
"What do you mean?" Josh asked, taking the boxes apart and putting them in between the counter and garbage can.  
"You two were the only ones who never came back downstairs last night. I didn't hear anything, but Jess said she did."  
"What did Jess hear?"  
"I don't know, she just said you guys were being really loud. I asked Mike, but he wouldn't tell me anything. Getting into trouble?"  
"So much trouble. Right, Chris?" Josh hadn't wanted to try explaining anything, so he put the spotlight on his friend instead.  
"Uhh.. yeah. Always getting into trouble, us three, heh." he answered, rubbing the back of his neck.  
"I won't pry and ask what you were doing, don't worry," Sam said, raising her hands in defense. "Just curious, that's all."  
"Games." Josh said. "Monstrous, terrible, scream-inducing games." Josh said, all while still staring at Chris. He was teasing him, torturing him for being mean. Even the smallest of things, Josh considered bad attitude, oblivious to his own, and considering he fed off of the affection of others, he took every little bit of harsh words or rude remarks to heart, even if society had said they did nothing wrong. 

"Right.. so, hide and seek, huh? This.. this isn't going to be any sort of repeat of last year, right, Josh?"  
"What are you talking about? It's just hide and seek. You hide, they seek." Josh shrugged.  
"We managed to get together as a group today to throw snowballs at each other, which I'm sure some would have preferred to be shotgun bullets, but.. let's not jump too quick to conclusions, alright? Play it safe."  
"..with flashlights?"  
"Flashlights?"  
"Turn the lights off, hide in darkness, seek out with flashlights. Or candles."  
"No, no candles, Josh."  
"Hey, it'll keep the wendigos away. A candle a day keeps the wendigos away. Patent that." Josh pointed at Chris, who rolled his eyes in response. 

Sam laughed and when the oven beeped to signal it reached the set temperature, she playfully shoved Josh out of the way to put the pizzas in the oven. 

"Fine, I'll okay flashlights. But real talk, do you think those things will come here?"  
"Nah. I mean, no one's been outside at night, right? They probably don't even know we're here."  
"Actually, Jess and I were on the porch last night. Mike, too. We didn't see anything."  
"Ah, let's hope there wasn't anything. Don't spoil the game, Sam, we're supposed to be having fun up here."  
"Says the guy who left us emotionally scarred last year."  
"It was a prank."  
"A damn stupid one, if you ask me. You could've gotten someone killed."  
"So it's my fault shit went down?"  
"To a degree, yes. You traumatized people. You traumatized me. And don't go running off, Josh. Let's move past it, okay? I'm just saying... don't repeat last year."  
"And yet here you are, joking with me and sticking close to my side."  
"Josh."  
"What? If I traumatized you so much, why'd you come back? Why not forget me? Or say, _'Hey Josh, you tormented me last year and tried to kill me, go fuck yourself'_?"  
"Because Chris insisted. Alright? Chris convinced each of us, individually, to come back up here with you. He cares about you more than any of us, and I trust his judgement more than anything, because he's the one you're closest to. That's obvious enough. And I care about you. Dick."

Josh watched Sam storm off, hurt by Josh's words and the argument. He knew something was going on between them, even if tiny, he just never pursued it. And now, he was trying to get it on with men instead, his sexual orientation a haze of confusion. He never claimed to be good with women, anyway.

Chris, off-set by the argument he had to witness and the accusation of him being the one to round up the group to come back up here, left him awestruck and statuesque. His instinct was to comfort Josh instead of Sam, which probably granted him the label of 'douchebag friend'. He sighed, coming out of his daze, looking at Josh.

"Sorry." he muttered, unsure of what else to say.  
"For what?" Josh retorted, facing the stove to turn the timer on for twenty-five minutes.  
"I dunno. For... anything, really. That argument. Not sticking up for you. Yelling at you."  
"You don't need to stick up for me," Josh said, his speech slurring like it did before his breakdown last night. "She's right. I screwed you guys over. I don't know why I thought you'd come back."  
"Well, we did come back."  
"Because you probably told them some bullshit story to get them feeling guilty. You've done it before."  
"I was doing it for you. I thought this would be some sort of burial of the past, so we could try to be friends again and move forwards."  
"It probably would have been better if you stayed quiet. Then no one would be up here."  
"Are you okay, Josh?"  
"Of course I'm okay. I'm always okay. See?" Josh stopped staring at the floor and looked at Chris, forcing as genuine a smile he could manage. 

Chris could see the corners of his lips quivering. He'd lost count how many times Josh had claimed to be fine with his typical 'See?' and a frail smile. Josh always subsconsiously did something with his actions or his face, or how he said things, that always turned Chris into a pushover, giving in to whatever Josh wanted, regardless of what kind of shit he pulled.  
He moved closer to Josh to hug him, and Josh usually accepted, though this time he backed up before Chris could get his arms around him. 

"I don't need a hug. Let's talk about the plan."  
"Right. The plan..."  
"Upstairs. I suggested hide and seek with flashlights because it would make the plan easier."  
"So.. what do you plan on doing?"  
"Dude. We." Josh corrected for the second time. "We get Mike to be the seeker first, or maybe play a round or two regularly and then do this. We hide in a room, and we leave the door ajar with a light on, yeah? Dead giveaway, it would lure him in right away. When he tries to sneak in, we pull him in and shut the door. Since he's so against all this, I figured we could reiterate last night, but to him."  
"No. No, Josh, definitely not, I am.. I will not. I will not do that with him."  
"Why?"

It was a simple question, a one-worded inquiry, and yet it was so difficult to respond to. Standing close to Josh again, Chris just stared at him. All he could ever do lately was stare at him, speechless. He thought for a moment, considering the question placed before him, wondering exactly why he had become okay with last night after awhile, but was so adamant on avoiding a repeat today. Chris then realized that last night, he was doing these things to Josh, not Mike. He remembered the love he felt when he finally kissed Josh, and when the events turned into something so much more exhilarating. He remembered what Josh told him less than ten minutes ago, about his returned feelings.  
With no one around to watch or question them, and the opportunity back to try again, Chris looked at Josh's lips, the same desires washing over him once again. He leaned closer and whispered, before kissing Josh,

"Because he's not you."

Taken aback by the change of mood, Josh nearly went cross-eyed from staring at Chris so close while being kissed, forgetting for a moment to close his eyes. He kissed back, the only touching between them being the connection of their lips. Josh was the first to carry out more physical contact, clutching at Chris' shirt and leaning into him, forcing him backwards. He turned them slightly to get Chris against the counter, pressing his body against him. He wanted to lift him up to the countertop, but Josh didn't want to wrongly estimate his strength - or lack thereof - and so he remained within the same height as Chris. Just as he was moving his hand down to Chris' hip, they were pulled apart in a panic from the approaching voices.

"You guys wanna do shots?"  
"Why shots? Why not straight from the bottle?"  
"Really, Jess? Don't go all alcoholic on me. You're the one who told me to suggest shots."  
"You were the one acting strange, Michael. I needed a clever ploy to get you to talk to them again."  
"..Suggesting shots is a clever ploy?"  
"Shut up."

Chris and Josh stepped apart from each other, looking down the hall as Mike and Jess entered the kitchen. Of all people to walk in, Chris thought. They had finally gotten close again, without the interruption of someone else, and fates[2] allowed Michael to be the one to almost walk in on it.

"Someone say shots?" Josh questioned to fill the void of awkward silence.  
"No, just bottles." Jess said, smiling with her head tilted.  
"Jess, we're not drinking from the bottle." Mike argued, glancing down at her.  
"There's only one left anyway." Josh said, pointing at the clear bottle on the counter.  
"Shots it is. When's the pizza ready? Jess said, peering into the oven window, not bothering to look at the timer right in front of her.  
"Twenty minutes."  
"Perfect. Twenty minutes to catch a buzz."

Jess took the bottle and shoved it into Mike's arms, searching the cupboards for the hoard of shot glasses, Josh standing next to Chris and watching. He glanced briefly towards Mike, taking note of his nervous repetitive swallows. 

Finding the tiny glasses, Jess stacked them and propped her chin on top, hoping they wouldn't fall and shatter to the floor as she turned and mumbled 'come on' to Mike, the fidgety man following her back out without hesitation. Twenty minutes of another silent treatment.

\--- 

In the ever-advancing dark of night, a tray and a half of pizza cleared and two shots for everyone but Ashley, the group of eight trouble-makers laughed at stupid jokes and crazy confessions. It was still fairly early, but the darkness outside that reflected the indoors off the windows said otherwise.  
Josh had left briefly to find all the flashlights he could, four of them being in the cold basement, well hidden and unused. Luckily, all of them had batteries, though he wasn't sure how well-charged any of them were. The flashlights seemed to all be working, but for how long?  
Returning to the giggling individuals upstairs, Josh set the flashlights down on the table, beyond ready to start this game, and the plan of essentially kidnapping Mike.

"Alright, so here's how it goes. All lights go off, you get these flashlights only, and some might die out quicker than others. If you find batteries, kudos to you. No one leaves the house, basement is allowed. If you're in a room, you may turn on a lamp, but no overhead lights. Don't waste your flashlights." he announced, like some sort of game master.  
"Who's the seeker?" Ashley asked, everyone responding with 'not me' in unison.  
"Deal from a hat? I already wrote our names down." 

Josh took the beanie from underneath his arm and tipped it just enough to show the folded papers inside. He had honestly written everyone's names out, but he would play them and declare Mike as the seeker, no matter whose name he saw.

Turning his face up towards the ceiling and closing his eyes, Josh moved his fingers around the papers in the hat for awhile before picking one out and opening his eyes to read. He glanced at everyone briefly, seeing them all waiting in anticipation. The paper read Matt's name, but it wasn't the name he would call. Josh re-folded the paper and put it back in with the rest. They all stood to grab flashlights as Josh spoke.

"Behold, the seeker of round one is... heh, Michael." he said, chuckling and looking at Chris, who was shaking his head at him. "Run free! Find your places, my friends. Cochise, onward. Mike, you better start counting; twenty seconds."  
"Thirty!" One of the girls yelled, too far away to identify.  
"Fine, thirty." Josh yelled back, deciding to further pursue his taunting by winking at Mike and running off in the same direction as everyone else, Chris following behind him. 

When they heard muffled counting, the two watched everyone giggle and run in opposite directions. Josh nodded and grabbed Chris' arm, heading back out towards the staircase in the living room. They ran up the stairs on light feet, looking back to make sure Mike wasn't cheating. They looked at the array of rooms, questioning which was best.

Chris pulled his arm out of Josh's grasp and took of towards the right of the building, where they were last night. He went past everyone's rooms, including the unused few and Josh's, stopping at Mike's room, the door wide open. They leaned over the railing as Mike was at fifteen seconds, still facing the main door and covering his face with his hands. Chris pulled Josh into the room and shut the door, leaving a crack as Josh had said.  
Josh turned on the flashlight to maneuver around better but he still bumped into something, cursing in a whisper as he stumbled into a corner behind the door. He shone the light up to Chris, blinding him momentarily, getting a laugh out of him finally. Chris crouched on the floor next to Josh, waiting for more details on what was going on.

"This is our place. We leave the flashlight on, point it at the door. When he comes up here, he'll probably come in. We'll turn it off when we see the door open, watch him stumble for a minute because he can't fuckin' see," Josh giggled, putting the flashlight on the floor. "And then when he's in enough for one of us to get behind him, we shut the door and commence our session."  
"Our session?"  
"Session of sex."  
"Josh. You're not going to..."  
"No- just some fun with the hand. Maybe I won't even let him release, I'll just build him until he's almost there, and then we bolt. Ooh, what if we recorded him? Got your cellphone on you?"  
"Okay it's one thing to be physically doing this, it's another to record it. Yes, I have my phone, but I won't satisfy your dirty prank ideas and film it."  
"You suck the fun out of everything. Shh!" Josh went to clamp his hand over Chris' mouth when he heard something but instead hit him in the face, pushing his glasses painfully into his nose. Chris was about to start swearing at Josh, but the hand that quickly slid over his mouth prevented him.

In the hallway, they could hear very faint giggling and the shuffling of feet. If one of them camped out in a room too closeby, they'd have to abandon the plan. _'Or gag him really well..'_

Josh removed his hand from Chris' mouth, and got up from the floor, shining the flashlight around the room, looking for something material to put around Mike's mouth when they got him in the room. No bandanas, no scarves, no spare materials lying around that weren't thick enough to choke him but not thin enough to be useless, either. Eventually, Josh started softly laughing to himself as he pulled a pair of unworn boxers from one of the dresser drawers Mike threw his clothes into, wondering what could be more humiliating than having that shoved in your mouth. He carried it back to Chris, getting back down on the floor beside him. He shined the flashlight at the folded article of clothing and shook them open, smiling. 

"Use it as a gag." Josh whispered.  
"Dude. Gross." Chris whispered back when he saw what Josh was holding.  
"Effective." Josh argued, snickering. 

After several minutes of nothing except for a distant shriek and laughter, the atmosphere silent save for their breathing, footsteps could be heard in the hallway again. They were slow, the perpetrator probably trying to be quiet and failing miserably. They assumed it was Mike and prepared themselves. Chris tapped on Josh's shoulder and leaned closer to whisper to him as quietly as possible,

"Wait, what am I supposed to be doing?"  
"You just shut the door, and I'll take care of him. You can stand guard or something."

Chris was relieved he didn't have to partake in another touchy-feely incident. When it came to someone he had feelings for, it wasn't such a big deal, but he wanted no part in getting it on with Mike. They may have claimed to be friends but Chris was never quite chill with Mike and his behaviour. He was sure last night was only to fulfill the tension that Jess wouldn't satisfy, but Chris didn't want to hurt Josh with the almost definite truth, so he kept quiet about it. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to humiliate him, for a few minutes.

When the footsteps got closer, the floor creaked and they heard the person say 'shit!', the creaking ending abruptly when they probably stepped back. It was definitely Mike. Josh moved the flashlight slightly, turning it more towards the door, trying to get Mike's attention. The footsteps continued again, right outside of the room, and if it had been any quieter, they probably could have heard him breathing.

When the door moved an inch or so, Josh went to stand, but it closed again and the footsteps continued down the hall. _'Shit! Did he figure out what was going on? He's probably thinking no one else would come in here but us. Fuck. Should we abort?'_

Josh elbowed Chris, nearly knocking him over as he whispered to him.

"Should we abort?"  
"Abort? Why would we abort? It's still on. This is revenge."  
"Revenge for what? I was just doing this as a humiliation prank because of his homophobic bigotry."  
"Don't worry about it. We do not abort mission."  
"..Fine."

When the footsteps started coming back, Chris worried he spoke too loudly, his heart racing as he had to quickly prepare himself again. If they didn't move stealthily enough, Mike would see them and would call them out or leave again before they had the chance to shut the door. Chris patted Josh's back and whispered for him to switch places with him, so Chris could be closer to the door, making it an easier task to get to it and close it in time. Side-stepping while still crouching, Chris moved behind Josh to take his place, making a quick decision to move closer to the door, standing directly behind it. It was probably more stupid than hiding in the corner, but if they were lucky enough that Mike didn't look around the door before fully opening it, Chris could easily shut it and probably startle Mike further before Josh had the chance to 'tackle', as he claimed he would. 

Josh moved the flashlight again, watching the beam of light shake. The steps ceased outside the door again, and he started to rise from the floor, as ready as he would get. Each of them watched the door begin to slowly open, Chris pressing himself into he wall and staring at the doorknob, waiting for the opportunity to grab it and shut the door.

Josh could see the toe of Mike's boots that he never bothered taking off enter the ray of light from the flashlight, and his heart pounded in his chest with anticipation and a bit of anxious regret. For a split second, he wondered if he should just let himself be caught. Deciding to continue with the plan, he took a quiet deep breath, watching and waiting to see Mike's whole frame before moving.

As the taller man stepped fully into the room, thankfully looking in the opposite direction, Chris began to close the door and Josh quickly moved closer, reaching around and covering Mike's mouth with the hip region of the boxers Josh found, using his other hand to grab his arm and pull him into the room, falling onto the bed. He didn't scream, but he seemed to gasp in shock. He who had sought had been found by his prey.

Chris stood against the door, the pounding of his heart reverberating through his entire torso, trying to make sense of the moving mass of shadows before him. The flashlight was still where it sat before in the corner, pointing towards the door, the glow messing with his vision. It didn't matter what he could or couldn't see, however. Knowing what Josh planned and hearing it was enough, even if that alone made Chris cringe.

Mike was audibly trying to mutter 'what the fuck' under the thin material, and Josh took it as a cue to ball up the rest of it and stick it in his mouth just enough to lower his noise levels. He had managed to get Mike's arms underneath his back, sitting on his stomach to keep him from pulling them free. He leaned closer to Mike, holding a finger up to his own lips.

"Shhhh, shh shh, chill. I swear, I'm not going to hurt ya. This is just to help you find yourself, since you enjoyed using me last night for your own personal pleasure and today you avoid me. Besides, if you start yelling, you're literally giving everyone permission to change hiding spots, which will only make your job as the seeker more difficult. Okay?"

Mike had stopped trying to spew out swear words at Josh and instead stayed still. Josh's eyes had already adjusted well enough to the darkness to see part of Mike's expression. He looked confused, even a bit skeptical, but he nodded nonetheless.

Josh slid back on Mike, down to his thighs. He watched Mike lift his head to watch Josh do what he already knew was coming, seeing Josh pull at the button of his jeans, yanking the zipper down. At least Mike had been kind enough to be slow.

Accidentally jabbing his fingers into Mike's hipbones while trying to pull his jeans down, Josh apologized, hearing an annoyed, muffled 'mhm' come from the man beneath him. For someone so against anything that even so much as implied he was anything other than straight, Mike wasn't moving. Josh's confidence levels were only this high because of the vodka in his system and the fact that he was calling this a prank.  
Wanting to call out Mike on being a terrible liar upon realizing he was already getting an erection, Josh chuckled as pulled Mike's dick out from his pants, experimentally holding it in his hand. Not sure if he should try copying their movements from yesterday or not, Josh sighed to himself and tilted his head in thought for a moment before moving his hand. It was erratic, uncertain movements as first, but he eventually evened it out, stroking Mike's quickly hardening length, watching in disbelief at what he was doing. He wondered if this is how they both felt last night when they were dominating him.

Noticing Mike beginning to pull an arm free from under his back, Josh leaned forwards, slapping his hand onto Mike's arm unintentionally roughly, cringing at the loud sound. He heard Mike try to say something that sounded like 'damn it' and he apologized again, continuing with the rapid movement of his hand.

Chris remained at the door, watching with a blank expression. The only thing he could make out in the darkness was the shape of a person sitting up. He turned his head to press his ear against the door, listening for any noise on the other side, though he heard nothing. When he heard something on the inside, however, he turned his attention back to where he knew the other two knew were. After the confessions of feelings and the kissing against the kitchen counter, Chris felt a spark of jealousy. He wasn't in a relationship with anyone, but still had unbelievable jealousy when he saw someone he liked doing what he only dreamed of having done to them, being done to somebody else. He knew this was only a prank, and Chris was even in partial agreement in the revenge aspect of knowing he used Josh last night, but he couldn't help feeling anger towards the situation. 

Eyes closed and gagged with an unknown material in his mouth, Mike laid still on the bed, letting it all happen. Being the typical jock who got all the girls had always been his thing, and he fought long and hard to keep his rank there, but he was finding it harder and harder to deny the reality of his attraction to men. It wasn't explicit or excessive, certainly not enough to consider a relationship with a guy, but enough to make him rethink his orientation. A dark part him didn't mind this was happening, because it meant another round of pleasure from somebody else's hand, which he actively sought out, but he knew it was probably only a prank of sorts.

Josh had flashbacks of the night prior as he pumped the cock in his hand, remembering how he only got a few seconds of touching Chris before Mike made him stop. He zoned out, a new kind of ache in his chest when he thought of Chris, wishing he could solely do this with him instead of Mike. 

The rythmic motion of his hand was fast and steady, and Mike had finally begun making noises. He moaned softly, enjoying current events far too much, completely unaware of what those two had been planning. He was oblivious to the choice Chris had made as well, as had Josh been, his back to the blonde. Chris had sighed to himself in frustration and took out of his phone, hesitating before opening the voice memo app, thumb hovering over the red record button for awhile before finally pressing it, the guilt clouding his mind, but he didn't want to stop the recording.

"See, you can't deny that you like it," Josh said quietly, speeding up his pace and listening to the other moaning. When Mike had begun trying to move his hips in sync with Josh's hand movements, Josh figured it was nearly time to stop, but he had to time it carefully and quit at a precise moment. He paid close attention to the physical sighs, no knowledge of the fact that Chris was behind him recording all the audio in the room.  
Chris watched the soundwaves move every time Mike moaned in pleasure or whenever Josh said something, focusing on the patterns rather than whatever Josh was saying.

"Mm, I know all about your dirty little tricks." Josh said, his throat dry, giving him a raspy voice. He tried his hardest not to swallow to keep it in that range, noticing the effect it had on Michael. "But.. you know, I don't like being used. And people who laugh at others when they're just the same make me sick." He reveled in the sounds Mike made, knowing he could drag them out with just his hand. He felt powerful and it was giving him a high, but he had to stay focused on the original intent. This was meant to tease, not satisfy. 

Squeezing the shaft every time his hand dropped started to reach for the material in Mike's mouth, the moans and groans and loud breathing through his nose signalling he would soon come, Josh got up on his knees to let Mike rock his hips. He felt precum begin to drip onto his hand, and he thought that might comedically explain why Jess was so reluctant to do anything with him. He pulled the fabric out of Mike's mouth and tossed it aside, Chris glancing up when he saw the object out of the corner of his eye.

Free to talk, Mike moaned louder, the sound of it going to Josh's groin, but he wasn't about to let his plans fall through. Hips still moving, and voice beginning to crack, increasing in pitch, the sharp inhales of breath tell Josh to stop any second now..

"Fuck." 

The first word to come out of Mike's mouth, wanting absolutely nothing at all in the world right in that moment than to reach the edge, but just as he was sure it would come, the pleasant sensation was abruptly stopped, and the need that had taken over him wanted to lash out.

"Please, oh my god, Josh, keep going," he said, lifting his head to look at Josh, though he saw nothing but darkness and that damn beam of light in the corner. Josh neither responded nor continued with the movements.  
"Wh-.. why'd you stop?" Mike's voice was desperate, pulling his arms out from beneath his back and about to reach for himself, and Chris was getting all of it in raw format.  
"I don't like cheats."

Josh quickly got off of Mike and grabbed the flashlight from the floor, turning it off and lightly punching Chris in the shoulder. He looked down to see what Chris was doing on his phone before demanding they go.

"Bolt time."  
"Wait, are you filming me?!" Mike asked in exclamation, sitting up. "What the hell, you assholes!"

When Chris was out of the room in the hallway, Josh was pulling the door shut, leaning in for one last thing.

"If you want to finish, come find me."

He snickered and took off when he pointed the flashlight at Mike to reveal the humourous sight of a frustrated man with an erection, struggling to tuck it away in his pants, seeing him trying to get off the bed to initiate a chase.

"Fucking run!" Josh said to Chris, laughing and running down the hall towards the main staircase, Chris joining him with a smile of accomplishment. He had stopped the recording when he was waiting in the hall, having captured everything post-tackle. Mike was wrong about the filming part, but he was in a recording, and it could be used as possible blackmail if they ever needed to, though it wasn't very good for anything.

Almost falling down the stairs on their way down, Josh and Chris glanced up once more as they were reaching the main floor, seeing Mike looking over the railing at them, frowning and still trying to zip his pants back up, failing to effectively chase them. They ran towards the basement, slamming the door shut once in the stairwell and stumbling down the stone steps together, giggling like schoolgirls. 

They saw someone peek their head out from behind a box, and Josh tried shushing them while laughing, it coming out as an awkward 'shh-sh-sh' as he pulled Chris back to another area of the basement, falling to the floor behind stacked up crates and equipment. The flashlight fell from Josh's hand, flickering briefly when it hit the concrete floor, and when he finally stopped laughing, he rested his head against the wall and turned to see Chris, the fading light revealing his enough of his face to see that he was still smiling. 

"His face. He's so angry." Josh said, his shitty pranks completed once again.  
"I recorded it," Chris said, giggling. "He thinks I filmed him, but I just recorded it."  
"Let me hear it."  
"Down here? But there's someone else here."  
"I'll keep the volume low, just for a second," Josh held his hand out. "Gimme."

Chris handed Josh his phone, and having known his lock screen passcode, Josh was tapping the numbers and once in, navigated to the app he assumed Chris used, tapping again on the only audio file there. He fast forwarded it to the end. 

_'Why did you stop?!'_  
'Are you filming me? You assholes!'  
'Fucking run!' 

Josh stopped the audio and handed Chris' phone back to him, covering his face with his hands and quietly chuckling.

"Mike is going to kill me. It was real nice knowin' ya, Christopher." Josh said jokingly, nudging him.  
"Oh, you. Hey, uh.. you said he should come find you if he wanted to finish. Were you serious about that? Do you think that's why he's trying to catch you?"  
"I mean, it is a game of hide and seek and the goal is to catch us, right? Uh.. don't worry about it. It was just a ploy to get him to freak out. I wanted to see what he'd do. Have your camera ready if he tries something, because he probably thinks I'm serious."  
"..So you're not serious about it?"

Josh looked at Chris, squinting slightly before smiling softly, raising a hand to touch his face. He turned his head to see him better and sighed. He wasn't sure if he was serious or not about the offer to Mike. It was mostly just a test to see how he would react, but he couldn't wholeheartedly deny he wouldn't mind it, either. Regardless of that thought, he knew he could be open with Chris about his feelings now, and he wanted to spend more time with him, in a way they never had before. He didn't want Mike's needs getting in the way. Josh was confused with himself because of all this, but he didn't want to hurt anybody. Not this time.

"I'm not serious about it. Unless it's you, well then, ohoho, sign me up."

Chris laughed, not caring if they actually got caught by the frustrated Michael Munroe anymore. He rested his head against Josh's shoulder, still laughing, feeling Josh's fingers playing with his hair. He had a rule about nobody touching his hair in fear they would mess it up, but the situation was far too beautiful to throw a fit. 

Chris lifted his head and looked at Josh, sighing, his heart fluttering in his chest from the adrenaline and from how totally beautiful Josh looked in the horrible light in a dingy basement. He smiled again at the sarcastic thought, deciding he was beautiful no matter the circumstances, and tapped Josh's nose before kissing him. It was quiet, sublte, but for him, it was enough. 

They stopped when they heard yelling upstairs, staring up at the basement ceiling, listening. It was Mike, and he was yelling for them to reveal themselves. 

"Come out, come out wherever you are, you little fuckers." 

Everyone else having no idea what had taken place yet again on the second floor in the lodge, they probably all assumed Mike had had too much vodka and was acting out, never calling his friends names on a normal day without alcohol. But to Josh and Chris, it was hilarious and they burst out laughing again, covering each other's mouths when whoever else was down there with them, one of the girls, scolded them.

"Would you two shut the hell up? You are children."

Josh fell into Chris, holding Chris' hand to his mouth, having removed his from Chris', who was grinning at him. He then pulled Chris' hand away and tried to force a straight face, whispering to him as calmly as he could, his voice higher in pitch in a silly sort of way, sounding exasperated.

"We're children. We are children, Chris. You were right, this is a childrens' game, and we are fucking children."

Whenever Mike did find them, they'd have Hell to pay, for but the time being, it was nice to be best friends again, and to drop the awkwardness and just be close to one another. The tension between them had faded and it was back to normal, foolish pranks and giddy laughter shared with each other. They calmed themselves down and sat still, waiting for the monster upstairs to catch them and shout at them from here to kingdom come. Pleasant waiting, when you were with your best friend, who meant the world to you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1I literally do not care if "brunette" and "blonde" are feminine terms. I have always used them, for all genders. Shhhhhhhh. Hush, babe.
> 
> 2I have a headcanon where Chris is really into fate and destiny and that he is possibly pagan.
> 
> Lmao, much thanks to my mom for helping me choose who got hit by the snowballs.  
> Idea input for bottom!Mike being pulled into a room by Josh and Chris accredited to ChazF. I know this wasn't what you were probably picturing and certainly not I was picturing, but I can't see Chris actively pulling Mike into a room with Josh and doing anything to him, lol. I've decided I will do a third chapter, however.  
> Sorry the build was so damn long for such a disappointment. Don't kill me.

**Author's Note:**

> Fuuuck, no shame. I spent two days on this. I could improve a lot of things; first legitimate threesome fic, so hush. Climbing class trash + Mike = Purgatory. Hope you enjoyed it, brosephs.  
> Yo, a mister man dude-guy wrote this. How rare.  
> Also, Josh's panic attack is based on how my panic attacks usually occur. I relate so much to Josh, it's like we're the same person. PS I've dealt with sexual assault and abuse and I'm really fucking tired of being told to change the tags when there is clearly enough there to tell you what's in it. If you can't handle the heat, get the fuck out. Also, chapter 3's been cancelled. 
> 
> -Ash


End file.
